Gundam: SEEDs of Change
by Patriot-112
Summary: A unexplained event has merged the world of Gundam SEED with the REAL world. Chaos ensues, the United Nations is destroyed, and the world's militaries stretched thin, Radicals from both the E.A. and ZAFT running amok, who can stop this? The answer: us, the Gundam fans who know more about Gundam than any other. Rated M for language and Battle scenes
1. Prologue

**Patriot-112: Hey folks here I am with ANOTHER new fic. Now don't give me those words, I know what you're thinking. But honestly, I can't help myself!**

**Ron the True Fan: I take all the blame for causing the event! (Kicks Merkava MBT)**

**117Jorn: (Lands in a ZGMF-X2000 GOUF Ignited and climbs out) I am gonna LOVE this fic!**

* * *

_Prologue: When worlds Collide_

* * *

**Afghanistan - Wakhan Corridor**

**May 9th 2014**

* * *

The Wakhan Corridor. A 140 mile long stretch of land that connects the rest of Afghanistan to China. With the Pamir River, flowing from Lake Zorkul, forming the northern border of the Corridor, while the southern border is formed by the Hindu Kush and Karakoram mountains. At the Eastern border, the only natural way inside the corridor was the Wakhjir Pass, the highest pass ever at 4,923 meters high.

The Corridor was an isolated part of Afghanistan that was normally used as a route for travelers, and merchant traders. Now, it was mostly in disuse due to the conflict between the National Afghan Government, their U.S. Allies, and the Taliban. However it was because of this, that this small area of land was perfect for… other projects of the U.S Military.

Flying over the Afghan landscape was a single UH-60 Blackhawk Helicopter, sporting all of the colors and insignias of the U.S Military. It flew as low as the pilot could allow it, as it continued towards its destination. "We are 5 minutes out from the testing site, Colonel Rosen." the pilot said to the passenger in the back. "No sight of any hosties, we're in the green."

The passenger, a woman wearing the blue uniform of an U.S. Air Force Colonel, with a winter parka over it nodded as she looked outside at the snow capped landscape, her cobalt blue eyes holding scanning for anything out of the ordinary.

"Proceed steady as usual, CWO," said Colonel Patricia Rosen. "But keep a sharp eye, I don't want surprises thrown at us."

The Chief Warrant Officer nodded as he and his co-pilot continued their flight.

Patricia sighed as she leaned back against the cool metal of the Black Hawk's fuselage. She had been placed on this Top Secret project a year ago, and it was considered Classified, with a Tier One Clearance, and the government didn't know about it, not even the President. She was a bit unnerved at that, but her CO reassured her it was not a bomb or a biological weapon of any kind, but rather...something that will change the world forever.

Although she still had her doubts, there was little more she could do about this. All she could do was hope that all went as the egg-heads planned. This was going to be the first time she would actually be visiting the facility - and according to the report, the first testing of their project was going to begin soon.

The Blackhawk continued its course, as the pilot sent a wireless code out in the open. For a few moments nothing happened… until the side of a mountain began to slowly open up, like pair of great jaws opening. The colonel looked in surprise at how large the opening was - about the size of a B-2 Spirit stealth bomber, and more than wide enough for their Helicopter to enter through. As it moved inside, she could see they were in a hangar bay with many other Helicopters and VTOL Craft inside as well. All of which were being maintained by numerous engineers.

'_I wonder where they got all the funding for this!' _ she said as the Blackhawk continued to hover over the hangar before it landed on a pad.

"Welcome to Project: Wolfsbayne, ma'am," said the pilot, and the Colonel just nodded, as the door opened, and a pair of Security Personnel were waiting outside.

"Welcome, Colonel," said the first guard. "Please follow us, we'll get you settled in and then take you to meet Dr. Podolski."

The Colonel nodded as she handed her case to one of the guards, while holding a folder of documents.

"Lead on then Tech Sergeant."

* * *

**An hour later**

* * *

After an hour of walking through the base for about an hour, the Colonel and her guards entered a large room with white walls, ceilings and floors, and numerous tables covered with computers, monitors and other equipment that she had no knowledge of, along with numerous scattered papers and notes making it look like a mad scientists lab.

However in the center of the room was what caught her attention immediately: A massive cone-shaped device that looked to be the size of a school bus standing upright, with wiring, monitors and a mess of other objects attached to it, and numerous men in white lab coats were surrounding it.

She then looked at the white lab coat garbed individuals who were milling about checking for any bugs or glitches that might hinder the machines performance. One person caught her eye as she spotted one man shouting in Russian at the poor, younger, technician who couldn't understand what he was saying.

"Chto, chert voz'mi, s toboy ? ! VY pytayetes' poluchit' SSHA ubity ! ? Ty idiot!" the man shouted as the Technician held up his hands in surrender.

"Hey Doc, will you slow down! I can't understand when you speak Russian!" the Tech said trying to placate the man but it just made him angrier.

"Zatknis' vam nekompetentnogo ryvok !" He shouted back, before he looked at where the Colonel stood, before he took in a deep calming breath, before he pointed at the Tech "You. Go. Now." He said, and the Tech nodded hastily as he scurried away. The Russian let out a long sigh before he turned and faced the colonel. "My, apologies." He said in a deep russian accent, "Its as if everything is falling apart here lately with the first live test about to begin… you must be Colonel Rosen, I presume?"

Patricia nodded and approached the Russian scientist. "Yes I am, and you must be Dr. Anton Podolski." she said and looked around. "I can see you have your hands full."

The Russian sighed at that.

"You're right about that. We have only about an hour until the first test, and we cannot afford any mistakes," Anton said as he motioned for her to follow him. "The last head of this project went crazy, because he couldn't stand that he had to work with me, not to mention he was xenophobic."

Patricia looked a the scientist oddly for a moment before she looked a the device in the center of the room. "So… this is Project Wolfsbayne?" she asked. "Exactly, what is it that this thing is suppose to do? I was never briefed on it."

Anton smirked a bit. "Have you ever heard of Inter/Trans-Dimensional Theory, Colonel?" He asked.

Patricia blinked at that. "Only heard of it in something like Sci-Fi movies and novels. Where one person goes to a parallel universe and sees an alternate version of themselves," she said, and Anton nodded a bit at that.

"That's one decent answer." he said as they arrived at his office, and the Russian Scientist gestured her in. "But, we discovered something more than that... child's imagination. My predecessor believed that the Multi-verse theory may be true, and dedicated his life to Dimensional theories, as did I. And our research proved _very _fruitful. When the Soviet Union collapsed, we continued our research privately, but soon we gained the support of your government as we showed them our progress. And they gave us-" he gestured around him "-all of this!"

He then looked at the colonel again, with a grin. "And it's all been going so well!" he said. "In these past few years, we've made countless breakthroughs! Not only have we discovered that alternate universes do exist - but the Multi-verse theory may be true as well!" He gestured to the massive device in the center of the room. "Wolfsbayne will be the key to possibly _traveling _to these universe. Just think of the possibilities! We could encounter an alternate earth with high technology than ours, ones who have found cures to deadly diseases! Found alien life! The possibilities are nearly endless! This project could be the key to end all wars!"

He then sat down at his desk.

"There is also the possibility of finding an Earth without humans, giving us the opportunity to colonize," he said. "It could end the overpopulation problem."

Patricia was looking at Anton and was almost stunned.

"And... you say that if this test is successful, it will change Humanity for the better?" she asked, and the Russian scientist just smiled.

"Quite correct, my dear Colonel," he said and stood up as he opened up a drawer in his desk. "We had several successful small scale tests, and brought back some items. This will be Wolfsbayne's first full-scale test."

He then gave the colonel what appeared to be a small disk-shaped object and the Colonel looked at it confusingly.

"Just skim your finger along the side." Anton said, and Patricia did as she was instructed, and soon to her surprise, the object bean to shift into something until it took the form of a blue bird, and started acting like one as it hopped on her hand.

"W-What the...?" She asked and Anton grinned.

"The guys here call it the critter machine," He said, as the bird hopped onto her shoulders. "Its just _one _of the things we've brought back from these alternate universes in the small tests. We've recorded it transforming into things like birds, squirrels, and even poisonless scorpions."

The Russian scientist gave a chuckled as he looked at one of the guards who looked embarrassed. "The squirrel feature gave us a good laugh though." he said, as the second guard snickered while the first guard glared at him.

"I see...," Patricia said as she stroked the bird's head and couldn't but noticed it felt as real as a normal bird. "The feathers feel so real!"

Anton nodded. "Of course," said, as he motioned for her follow him, as the bird went back into the Colonel's hand and turned back into the disk. "Come with me to the control room. We're just about ready to begin the test."

Patricia nodded as he placed the machine in her breast pocket and followed the doctor.

A few minutes later, Patricia and Anton stood at a large control room, which was lined with computers, which overlooked the lab itself which was being cleared out as the scientists left.

"So, how exactly does this work?" Patricia asked.

"Wolfsbayne itself is the generator which helps produce the actual 'field' where the magic happens," Anton said, "The U-Field it creates allows us to send things in and out. Though this will be the largest field that we will create - large enough for people to venture out and get actual recon on what's on the other side, and bring back what they can find."

Patricia didn't say anything as they arrived at one of the terminals and Anton began to type in commands to the machine. Soon a loud humming began to sound from the device, causing the Colonel to look at it and be on edge.

"Nothing to worry about, just a small demonstration." he said, as electricity began to arc around the Wolfsbayne before suddenly a bright the size of a basketball appeared in front of it, before something came out. Patricia was speechless as looked to be some kind of dagger.

"A... Amazing." she said, and Anton nodded.

"Yes..." he said. "You can tell how useful this could be..." he then chuckled "But I feel sorry for whoever just lost that Dagger of course."

They watched as one of the guards outside near the machine, carefully approached and picked up the dagger, which had a handle that looked to be of a smooth red stone, with the scabbard the same color, before the soldier drew it and looked as if he was impressed by the craftsmanship of the blade as it looked very sharp.

Patricia could only stare, which only caused Anton to chuckle. "If this test proves successful, Colonel Rosen," he said as he looked at the machine, "history will mark it as the day that humanity achieved the power to cross dimensions."

* * *

**One Hour Later**

* * *

After an hour of preparations, once again Patricia and Anton were gathered in the control center of the lab, after setting up a larger area for the Wolfsbayne to produce its U-Field. "All systems are operating within acceptable parameters, sir." One of the scientists said. "Energy is at 200%, we're ready for the first full test."

Anton nodded at that. "Good, then proceed, Mr. Aikawa." he said, and the scientist, who was of Japanese origin, nodded. "Yes sir."

With that, the scientist went about the keyboard at a fast pace, his eyes looking as the data streamed in across his screen. As he was doing this, the Wolfsbayne begun to hum louder that the first time that Patricia heard it do before. And soon the familiar arcs of electricity began to form.

"Power levels holding steady, Doctor," he said, and the familiar light to began to appear again, however this time, it was big enough for a M1 Abrams to pass through, and it slowly growing larger.

"Its working..." one of the scientists muttered, "Its actually working..."

Anton grinned "It is," he said. "Prepare the survey team, I want them to go through that thing in-" he was cut off by a large rumbling sound, and the arcs of energy began to waver sporadically. Warning alarms started going off. "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?" He shouted.

"I-I don't know!" Another Scientist said. "The Field is going crazy! Power levels are fluxing… Wolfsbayne is going haywire!"

"Shut it down!" Anton shouted, as the ball of energy began to grow "Shut it all down! Now!"

"I just did!" The Scientist shouted, "And it's still going!" Suddenly the ball of energy became clear, before it suddenly expanded and faster than they could blink the wave of energy blew past them, causing everyone to jump in surprise.

"What the shit!?" shouted one of the guards.

"Doctor Podolski, what just happened!?" shouted Patricia.

Anton just stood, as his eyes were wide in alarm.

"I'm not sure..." he said honestly. "But I have a feeling that this not a good sign, in fact..."

* * *

**Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan**

* * *

A soldier wearing the ACU uniform in the brand new Multicam camouflage, yawned as he was stuck with another boring round of Guard duty. Sitting in the turret of the MRAP, the soldier could only look up at the sky.

"Man, this sucks…" said Staff Sergeant Daniel J. Cobb. "Good thing this is my last tour, and then I'm going home for good."

"Bored out of your mind, Sarge?" said another with the rank insignia of Corporal on his uniform.

Daniel chuckled a bit. "Yeah," he said. "There is literally nothing to do here anymore but watch grass grow. I don't _like _getting shot at, but at least I was doing something productive rather than just standing around here."

The corporal chuckled. "Don't we all," he said. "Though I'm glad we're pulling soon. No more keeping my eyes open for IED's or bombs strapped to people's chest." He then looked at Daniel. "How's your brother been doing though?"

"Drew's been doing good," he said, nodding. "Still back home. Though I remember him saying that sometime this month a friend of his from South Carolina was coming over to visit - first time the two will ever see each other face-to-face."

The Corporal grinned at that. "That's good to hear. Didn't you say he was a- Huh?" Daniel looked at the Corporal and saw he was looking at something and turned to what he was looking at, before he blinked.

"What the hell?" he said in confusion, all the while grabbing his M4 carbine. In the distance, what looked like a white ball of light was flying across the air, seeming to fly right over them.

"Is that a fucking UFO?" The Corporal asked in disbelief, as the ball of light then suddenly flashed, and then began to rapidly expand in a clear ball of energy - which was reaching towards them!

"Hit the deck!" Daniel shouted as he shoved the Corporal down to the ground, as the wave of energy passed over them.

It soon passed over the entire base scaring the hell out of the base personnel, and soon the ball continued to spread as it engulfed the entire country before crossing the borders of Afghanistan and out into its neighbors and beyond.

"What the FUCK was that!?" shouted the Corporal, while Daniel was still spooked at what happened.

* * *

**Yosemite International Airport.**

**Fresno, California.**

* * *

In the terminal that was part of the major airport of the Californian City of Fresno, was a young man dressed in blue jeans, a blue shirt with an American flag and Bald Eagle on the front, with brown tennis shoes, and a levi jacket sat in one of the chairs reading a book by Glenn Beck. He had brown eyes, military crew cut hair, and a slight three o'clock shadow beard.

"So your online friend is coming all the way out from South Carolina to see ya for time, huh Drew?" an elderly voice said, and Drew J. Cobb looked at his grandmother, Lee Dawn Bisko.

"Yeah, though I didn't think he would have the time and money to do that." he said. "I gotta admit, I was shocked when he sent me that private message."

Lee could only chuckle. "Well Drew, even in this shit pool of an economy, good fortune always comes out." she said, and Drew smiled.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." he said, and went back to reading his book, as he had a sign that said '117Jorn' written in red ink resting on his lap.

"_Your attention please,_" the intercom said. "_Flight 9 from Charleston South Carolina is now disembarking from gate 3. Repeat..._"

"And that should be him," D.J said as he looked up at the aforementioned gate, as people began to pile out. He held up his sign, waiting for his friend to spot him.

One of the last to walk out of the gate, was a young man who looked to be about twenty or so years old, standing at 5'10 with short brown hair, and brown eyes, wearing a pair of dark blue jeans, sneakers, and a red shirt, with a bookbag carried on his back, and carrying a small duffel bag in his hand, and over his left shoulder was a laptop case. He seemed to look around for a moment, before he saw D.J.'s sign and smiled "D.J.! Patriot!" He called out, raising his hand "That you man?"

D.J. could only smile. "Yup, nice of you to show up!" he said, and then yawned. "Though I don't like waking up in the wee hours of the morning."

Lee snorted and laughed a bit before smacking her grandson on the shoulder, while Jordan '117Jorn' Tackett also laughed as well.

"Yeah, sorry." He said, "But I can't control when and where flights take off and land." He cracked his neck a bit "Man, that was a long flight though… then again, I never have been in an airliner before, so I wouldn't if mine counted as a long flight." He then looked at the older woman next to him "So, is this your grandmother, Patriot?"

D.J. nodded at that. "Yup, this my Grams, Lee Dawn Bisko. On my mother's side." he said, and Lee greeted her grandson's friend with a smile.

"It's nice to meet you Jordan." she said, and Jordan nodded.

"It's nice to meet you as well."

* * *

**20 minutes later**

* * *

After picking up Jordan's bags the three were about to leave when they saw a large group of people just staring at the large television screen.

"What's going on over there?" said D.J. as the three joined the crowd.

D.J. blinked as he saw the CNN news reporter talking.

"_...still inconclusive._" The news anchor said, "_The U.S. government still has no idea what has caused this strange ball of light that has quickly crossed over the middle east and central asia, but it is clear that it is quickly gaining speed. It has already crossed over much of Europe, Asia, and Africa, and is expected to cross over the United States in less than three hours. The light seemed to originate somewhere in Afghanistan, and continues to expand across the world, and is even passing through space as it does so._"

"Light?" Jordan asked confused "What the heck are they talking about?"

"I don't know." Drew said, as he looked at the map of said country where this light came from. "But Afghanistan is where my brother is stationed, I hope he's alright."

Jordan can understand the worry his friend has for his older brother, since he had one as well. However his thoughts were interrupted as the News Anchor spoke.

"_We just received an update delivered by NASA! It appears that the growing dome of light has increased in speed, and is about to hit the West and East Coast in approximately_ ten minutes!" the anchor said worriedly, causing many of the people to to worry.

"O-Oh my God!"

"Is this some kind of sick joke, cause it doesn't sound funny to me!?"

Jordan, D.J and Lee looked surprise, as they looked at one another. "Maybe we should hurry up back to your place?" Jordan suggested, "If this turns out like the movies and shows when shit like this happens, there will be _huge _panics all over the place..."

D.J. nodded at that. "Yeah, you're right," he said and turned to his grandmother, who nodded and the three left the Airport Terminal.

* * *

**Long Beach, Los Angeles County**

* * *

"_About six minutes remaining until the light wave hits!" _

"_All units report in!" _

"_Charlie Company is moving down Ximeno Avenue now, ETA 3 minutes!"_

Across Los Angeles, the sight was the same in the panic brought about by the news report. Civilians were running amok as people panicked, and others looted nearby stores and houses. Though the former was far more numerous than the latter.

Quickly dispatching from Camp Pendleton, U.S Military Forces from the Army National Guard and Marine Corps were deploying to help law enforcement keep the peace and re establish order, as Humvees moved down the streets, and helicopters flew over the skies.

Flying over Belmont Heights, was a single U.S. Army Apache helicopter, it's crew watching the chaos below.

"Jesus Christ!" said the front gunner. "I hate to be the poor bastard who's down there getting that shit in order."

"Zip it, Marks!" said the pilot in the rear seat. "Just keep an eye on your scope!"

"I know that, Reiner!" The gunner said, and then sighed. "I just hope my wife and the kids got out when I told her."

"They'll be alright, buddy." Reiner said with a smile "Hopefully when this blows - shit! Nine-oh-clock!" The two pilots turned and their eyes widened as they saw what looked like a massive _wall _of clear energy with sparks of electricity coursing through it. And moving their way - _fast._

"Whoa shit..." Marks muttered.

"Dammit! It's too early!" Reiner shouted as the wall headed right towards them, while passing over the sandy beaches of L.A. and through the city of Long Beach.

The two pilots closed their eyes as the wave passed over them.

The two opened their eyes and turned to the wave.

"What the fuck!?" Marks said, as he and Reiner were completely stunned by what just happened.

"That was... seemingly painless."

It wasn't long until the walls of light met, and began expanding into space, past the moon before stopping before Mars. Then in flash of light, the entire planet Earth, its moon, and its human population vanished.

* * *

**Meanwhile - Panama**

**May 9th… Cosmic Era 71**

* * *

Across Panama, the entire area was in total chaos as ZAFT Forces began their assault against the E.A defense forces. From the skies descended ZGMF-1017 GiNN's, while from the air came in additional support as AMF-101 DiNN's attack to support their ground forces. Across the naval bases, ships scrambled to aid in the defenses, but were being assaulted from both the air, and from ZAFT aquatic mobile suits such as GhOON's and ZnO's.

The Earth Alliance's own forces, which were mostly tanks, VTOL gunships, and fighter jets were clearly outmatched, as they were swapped aside easily by the titan-like machines. Near a random location, two GiNNs were taking potshots at a group of tanks, the pilots inside were smirking cockily. "This is too easy." The first pilot said.

However, moments after he said that, a beam of energy blasted forward, and shot the GiNN's head off, shocking the second M.S pilot as he turned to face the source, and saw another mobile suit - with a much more humanoid design - appear and leaped forward.

"_W-What's that?_"

"_Is that the Earth Force's new Mobile Suit Strike?_"

As the Unknown M.S approached, from above on a Guul the GAT-X102 Duel Gundam soared forward, and Yzak looked at it with narrowed eyes.

"No, it's not!" He shouted, just as more beam fire arrived, destroying two more GiNN's. Yzak tracked it down, and saw _five more _of the same MS arriving in the battlefield.

"Shit! There's more!" he cursed, as his radio picked up the chatter of the E.A. pilots.

"_You had your fun! No it's our turn!" _

"_All of you Coordinators have gotten a little too Cocky!" _

Before the two sides could resume their fight, they were suddenly distracted by as a flicker of flashes caught their attention.

"_What the...? What was that?"_

Yzak blinked as he looked, and recoiled slightly as suddenly a rapid wall of… energy seemed to pass over them, briefly reminding him of the wave of energy from the Cyclops System at JOSH-A, but it passed over him quickly… and he survived. "What the… hell?" He asked in surprise.

"_The hell was that?_" A Strike Dagger pilot asked.

"_Who cares!_" Another pilot shouted, as he fired his rifle, blasting apart another GiNN. "_Kill the damn Patchworkers!_"

"Son of a bitch!" Yzak cursed as he fired back at the Strike copies, destroying five of them. As he moved his mobile suit about, he caught something in his peripheral vision, and turned and he was shocked to see a village that wasn't there in the recon photos. "What the? Where did that village come from?"

He then saw that a group of Strike Daggers also saw the village, but what he heard made his blood run cold.

"_What the hell? That village wasn't there before! Where did it come from?'"_

"_Don't worry about that damnit!_" The Team Commander shouted. "_ZAFT is right in front of us, and you're worrying about some damn village!?_"

"_Y-Yes sir!_" The Strike Dagger pilot said, as he continued to engage ZAFT over the Village. Yzak could see even from here people in the village running around, in fear and confusion, away from the fighting going on around them.

"Dammit! They don't even care about their own people!" Yzak shouted as he maneuvered the Duel and fired a few shots from his beam rifle nailing one Strike Dagger before it could step on a house. By now, the villagers were in full panic mode as they began to run outside the village and right into a group of EA soldiers who pointed their guns at them.

"What the hell are you people doing here!?" Shouted one the officer in charge. All the while the civilians looked in fear, and more confusion, as they raised their hands.

"P-Please sir! We don't know what's going on!" said one of the villagers, an old man by the looks of it.

"What's going on?" The officer shouted as he pointed at the GiNN's flying overhead "ZAFT is attacking! That's what's going on!"

"Z-ZAFT?" The Man asked, fear and confusion spread across his face "Who… what are you talking about?"

The whole group of EA soldiers all just blinked at that.

"Have you people been living under a rock for years!?" shouted one soldier incredulously.

The villagers along with the women and children all grew more fearful and confused by what the soldiers.

"P-Please, just don't hurt us! We didn't do anything wrong!" shouted a woman as she held a child as if to protect him.

The Officer just looked at them all in confusion, but before he could say anything a GiNN suddenly lands right next to their village where they stood, and begun firing its 75mm rounds at the EA Strike Daggers, the sudden appearance causing the villagers to panic and tried to rush past the EA soldiers.

"Oh shit!" shouted one soldier, before firing off his gun, into the group of people causing a chain reaction to cause the other soldiers to fire as well.

"No, you idiots!" shouted the officer, as the rounds hit the panic strickened people.

In the Duel, Yzak saw the Alliance troops fire into the villagers, causing his blood to boil in anger. "That's it!" He shouted, as he landed the Duel right next to them, and he rose his shield, and bashed it into the position of EA soldiers, crushing them all - while saving the villagers - or at least the ones that survived the slaughter.

Sighing, Yzak stood his Duel back up, as he looked at the Villagers. He could see many were now crying over the men women and children who had died from the EA's attack, while others continued to run in fear and confusion.

He then keyed his radio. "This is pilot Joule, the Alliance just shot up a group of civilians! Send some medical units to my location, NOW!" he shouted before he slammed his hand into the console. "What the hell is going on!?"

* * *

**Back in Long Beach**

* * *

"WHAT THE FUCK!?" Marks shouted as what looked like bolts of electricity almost shot their Apache out of the sky. "Where the _HELL _did that come from?"

"What the- What the hell is _that!? _Six oh-clock!" Reiner shouted, as their Apache quickly maneuvered down low. Mark looked, and saw a strange vehicle with a _very _large cannon mounted on top of it. It fired another shot of yellow energy their way, but Mark cursed as he moved his Apache down to avoid the shot.

"What the _fuck _is that thing?" Marks shouted as he moved his Apache, doing everything he can to avoid being shot by the bolts of lightning it was firing.

"I don't know!" Reiner shouted, "But it's shooting at us! Arming Hellfires!"

The gunship then flew around avoiding more shots from the artillery like vehicle, before lining up a shot and going into a attack.

"I got tone! Eat this asshole!" with that he fired the AGM at the cannon truck which streaked toward it before it connected, causing the vehicle to erupt in a fireball.

After taking a breath, after nearly getting shot down they then heard shouting.

"_This is Bravo Company! We're under fire! Goddammit! Who the hell is shooting at us?!_"

"_Alpha Company! These guys literally just appeared out of nowhere and started shooting us!_"

"_Charlie Company here! Same here! They've got- SHIT! TANK! THEY HAVE A TANK! UNKNOWN MODEL! WE NEED AIR SUPPORT NOW GODDAMNIT!_"

"_This is Elk Hunter 0-2! The whole L.A. area is turning into a goddamn warzone! Someone talk to me! What the hell is going on!?" _

"What's going on!? A few minutes ago it was all peaceful, now we're in the middle of a warzone!" Marks shouted as they looked down below and saw explosions and bullet tracers all over. Civilians were running around in a panic trying to get away.

"Worry about that later!" Reiner said. "Our guys need air support ASAP! We're heading to Charlie now!"

Marks just nodded, knowing that his friend was right as their Chopper banked right and headed deeper into the warzone that used to be their homes.

* * *

**Orb Union, **

**Onogoro**

**Three hours later**

* * *

Uzumi Nara Athha along with the whole Orb Parliament were gathered around a television as they watched what looked appeared to be an invasion of the all major countries of the Earth Alliance. However the strange thing was... they were being attacked by military equipment from before the Reconstruction War.

"Where did these forces come from?" Came the first person to ask, the head of the Mizutori Family, a woman with long red hair and green eyes. "Reports are coming in that they seemed to appear out of no where… and why use such old weaponry?"

"It doesn't appear to just be the Atlantic Federation," The head of the Kashima family, a man with black hair and blue eyes said. "Eurasia, South Africa, East Asia… we are even getting reports of small fights going on in Scandinavia and the Equilateral Union! It's happening around the globe!"

"There are also areas in which whole towns, cities, and even small villages that weren't there before just appeared out of thin air!" said Unato Ema Seiran. "A whole village just appeared near the fighting near Panama, and the people living there were confused and panicked at what was happening!"

"There's also something else..." said Rondo Mina Sahaku, head of the Sahaku family, as she flipped the channel of the TV, showing another city under attack. "This here is Beijing, capital of the Republic of East Asia, like everywhere else you can see EA forces fighting these invaders… but look closely." They did as asked, as the camera showed the EA Forces engaging the unknown enemies. However as the fighting progressed, they got a good view of an enemy tank and troops surrounding it, and Mina paused it right there.

"Look at the Tank's insignias and the Troops uniforms," she said. "Notice anything off about them?"

The other nobles looked at the still image, until Uzumi noticed the insignia and flag patches on the tank and uniforms. He blinked at what he was seeing.

"That's..." Uzumi said, and Mina nodded.

"Yes, that's the flag of the former People's Republic of China," she said. "And those aren't the only ones. We've been getting scattered reports of men and women flying the colors and using the equipment of the Canadian Military, German Army, Royal Air Force, the United States Armed Forces, and many many more."

"But… those countries all fell after the Reconstruction War!" The Mizutori Family head said, "They were merged to make nations like the Atlantic Federation, East Asia Republic, and the Eurasian Federation!"

"Apparently... these people didn't get the memo," said the Kashima head. "And now the whole world has gone crazy."

"ZAFT will undoubtedly use this to their advantage," said Unato. "The Atlantic Federation has called back all their forces in order to quell this... Rebellion."

"This is more than a simple Rebellion," Mina said shaking her head. "This is happening _everywhere,_ all at once. It's not isolated in one single part of the world. Even in areas where there isn't as much fighting, there is a lot of confusion going around. And just look at the size of their forces - how could such a massive force be built without _anyone _noticing? And why is it that ZAFT, the Colonies, and Orb is being practically ignored during all of this?"

The other nobles were also confused by that. They wondered why the same thing wasn't happening in their nation, and the space colonies, including the PLANTs.

Uzumi's eyes narrowed in thought, before speaking.

"We have to find the source of all this." he said, and the nobles all looked at the Represenative.

"And where do you propose we look Uzumi?" the Kashima head said.

Uzumi sighed. "As much as I hate it," he said. "Our best best is to investigate where the toughest fighting is seeming to take place… the Atlantic Federation, at the former United States." He glanced up. "Contact Captain Ramius and the _Archangel's_ crew," he said. "We may need their help if they are willing."

* * *

**Archangel Drydock**

**Izanagi Island**

* * *

The crewmembers of the former EA warship Archangel were all gathered around a television and the looks on their faces told it all as they watched as the entire planet has gone insane.

"This is nuts!"

"There's fighting in every single country!"

"Well the hell did these guys come from!?"

"Is Orb going to be attacked soon?"

These concerns were heard across the ship, and in her own quarters, Captain Murrue Ramius watched the screen in a similar state, a deep look of concern across her face. While she knew that the A.F nearly tried to have them all killed at JOSH-A, she was still watching as her old homeland was being attacked seemingly relentlessly. However something deep inside her said that there was more to whatever was going on here.

'_Did it have something to do with that flash of light?_' She wondered, as she recalled the brief flash of light which passed over Orb hours ago.

"The situation back home is chaotic," she turned and saw Mu La Flaga, with a serious frown on her face. "Many of the crew are worried about their families."

Murrue nodded at that.

"Yeah, and I think it has to do with that light we saw," she said. "It just seems too coincidental..."

Mu nodded. "You might be right," he said, before he shrugged. "But, on the bright side… whoever is attacking the rest of the world hasn't attacked us, and all EA forces are being recalled to defend their homelands, so that means they probably won't try to attack Orb for its Mass Driver… yet anyways."

Murrue nodded at that. "That's true, which means it will give Orb, not to mention the PLANTs, time to regroup," she said, and Mu nodded.

"Yep, of course we have to find out why this happening in the first place."

"Which is why I'm ordering an investigation," they turned and saw Uzumi along with two soldiers.

"Sir!" Murrue said, as she and Mu began to salute, but Uzumi shook his head.

"At ease, remember you're technically still part of the OMNI Enforcer, not the Orb Union," he said before he sighed. "Orb needs to find out what is going on… which is why I am asking you if you and your crew is willing to investigate the Atlantic Federation, and find out what is going on."

Both Murrue and Mu looked at him in surprise. "Investigate?" Mu asked. "Well… we probably could, but if the AF sees the _Archangel _approaching-"

"Erica has a few ideas to solve that," Uzumi said with a small smile. "She believes she can upgrade the _Archangel _to submerge under water, and allow you to sneak in undetected. We are also willing to lend you some of our Astray's and their pilots for the _Archangel _to utilize - even with Mr. Yamato's new Mobile Suit and with the return of your Strike, you only have two Mobile Suits."

The two blinked at that. "T… Thank you, Lord Uzumi. But, what about the Buster?" Murrue asked, and Uzumi nodded at that.

"At the moment, the Buster is too damaged to send into combat," he said. "Also, if you don't mind, I wish to send to send that ZAFT pilot you captured back to the PLANTs."

Mu and Murrue both nodded at that, seeing as they no longer see ZAFT as the enemy, they might as well release their sole prisoner.

"He's all yours, Lord Uzumi," Murrue said and Uzumi nodded. "We'll have some of our men transfer him over to you."

"Thank you," Uzumi said. "All we need is to give Erica the go-ahead to start the upgrades. It shouldn't take long - a week at most. And we will transfer the Astray's onboard as soon as I can find the volunteers."

The two nodded at that.

"While we're in the Atlantic Federation, what will you be doing, Sir?" Mu asked, and Uzumi sighed.

"I will have to contact the other neutral nations, as well as contact the PLANTs, but with Zala now leading them…" he groaned at that, while the two, now former, EA officers just sighed.

"I doubt he will listen, Lord Uzumi." said Murrue.

"Maybe," he said. "Though I hope the rest of the PLANT Council _will_. And even Zala will admit this situation deserves some level of investigation, especially after what happened during their attack at Panama."

"Let's hope so." said Mu, while Murrue also agreed.

* * *

**Lagrange Point 5**

**PLANTs**

**Aprilius One**

* * *

In the Council Chamber of the PLANTs, the council members, including Patrick Zala, the new Chairman, Ezalia Joule, Yuri Amalfi, and several others were all watching the news coverage of the total chaos happening on Earth. More Specifically, all the Earth Alliance nations.

"...North America, South America, the British Isles, Germany, France, Russia, China, Taiwan..." Yuri Amalfi read out the names on the report "Almost every single nation of the Earth Alliance is at war with factions using Pre-Reconstruction War military hardware, and is attacking on every single front imaginable. Even non-member nations like the Equilateral Union, and Scandinavia are in states of confusion as unknown forces appeared out of nowhere."

"It's even happening in Oceania," Ezalia said, "But the fighting there seems to have died down a bit, but there is still a lot of confusion going on, and we can't get clear reports, since our men on Earth are just as confused."

Not to mention there's the mystery of how _three _villages that suddenly just appeared near the Panama Mass Driver, where our recon reports say, they weren't there to begin with." said Tad Elsman. "They were not there 24 hours, and our forces who entered those villages say the buildings looked as if they were constructed hundreds of years ago!"

"Have we been able to get anything out of the villagers?" said Louise Lietner, while Yuri shook his head.

"Most of the locals are too frightened to even make a single coherent sentence." said Yuri. "But, from what our troops report, they're confused as hell as they never heard of ZAFT, the EA, or the war that is going on. They never even heard of what a Coordinator is!"

The other councilors looked at Yuri in shock "Impossible!" Said Eileen Canaver, "How could they possibly not have known about Coordinators and ZAFT?! They must be lying!"

"Why would they lie about it?" Parnel Jesek said, "They have nothing to gain for lying about knowing of the existence of Coordinators and ZAFT. And at that mention, they don't have any more to gain about not knowing what the EA is either. And considering how _willing _the EA forces were to gun them down if Pilot Joule's report is accurate..."

Orson White sighed at that. "I saw the report. About 23 people, most of them women and children, dead, plus over a few dozen injured." he said. "The serious cases probably won't make it."

"It's obvious that this situation warrants an investigation." said Patrick as he stood up. "While this gives us an opportunity to regroup and regain the manpower we lost at JOSH-A, these incidents can't be ignored."

"I agree with you, Patrick. But where do you think we should start?" Ezalia stated, as a map of the world came up, red showing nations that were affected minorly, and dark red showing nations where fighting is most severe. "We can't find anything out in the Neutral Nations, since the fighting's died down somewhat, while the E.A. nations are completely embroiled in infighting."

"Then those would be the best places to investigate," Patrick said, "The heaviest fighting seems focused around the Atlantic Federation… Athrun and the Justice is in the Pacific, looking for the Freedom… perhaps it may be best he heads in there to investigate. If we are lucky, he may find the Freedom somewhere in that mess."

"You may be right," Ezalia said, "However, sending your son in there alone with all of that fighting would be near suicide - even with the capabilities of the Justice. And now that the EA has begun mass production of their own Mobile Suits..."

Patrick grimly nodded at that, knowing that now that the Earth Alliance had Mobile suits, and lots of them, they will overwhelm their positions at either Kaohsiung or Victoria. Not to mention the Forces attacking the E.A. wouldn't stand a chance for long.

"Then we best move quickly." he said, and turned to Yuri. "Who can we send to help the Justice?"

Yuri sighed "We only have so many able pilots on earth after Panama and JOSH-A, " he said, "The only team I believe would be the best to send in is the Collin Team, they've been given the first batch of GuAIZ units, so they should be able to handle themselves against the EA's new Mobile Weapons."

Patrick nodded at that, and turned to a Greencoat guard, "Have Commander Collin report here at once!" he ordered and the soldier saluted and left to fetch said Commander.

While this was happening, all over the PLANTs, every single person was looking at the screen in awe and confusion as they saw men and women, dressed in Pre-CE military uniforms, and wielding weapons from era, fighting Alliance Troops. One of these was a ZAFT greencoat with tanned skin, and military cut red hair.

'_Man, this is insane.' _the ZAFT soldier said. '_Its happening everywhere on Earth… who are these people?_'

Martin DaCosta picked out his phone, and dialed up one of the numbers on it. He heard the phone ringing for a moment, before someone answered it "_DaCosta, that you?_" A male voice said.

Martin nodded "Yes sir," he said, "Have you checked the news lately? Earth has turned into a complete warzone down there!"

"_Yeah, we're ALL watching it,_"the voice said. "_I can't just believe what I'm seeing! Not to mention the guys fighting the Alliance are using old military equipment from the Pre-RW era, especially what used to be the old United States." _

"You think Zala would use this to ZAFT's advantage?" DaCosta asked, and he heard a sigh.

"_No. Even with the Atlantic Federation and the other EA nations struggling to maintain control, I doubt Zala would try something with the amount of forces we have right now_," the voice said. _ "With all the chaos going on down there, it's best ZAFT focused on securing our current footholds on earth. But we do need to find out what's going on down there."_

"It's likely Zala will send someone to investigate the hot spots," DaCosta said.

"_Agreed,_" The voice said, "_Which is why we should send in someone to investigate too… I'm going to give the go-ahead for the Harken Team to head down to Earth, and find out what the heck is going on._"

DaCosta blinked at that. "The Black Tri Stars?" he said.

"_Yup, their Custom units are perfect for ground combat, a drop pod ship will move over North America, and drop them off," _the voice said. "_Hopefully, they'll be able to find out something. In the meantime, head on back to the ship." _

DaCosta nodded at that. "Right, I'm on my way back." he said and then hung up the phone and left the crowd to head back to the Eternal.

* * *

**A Week later**

**Auberry, California**

* * *

It had been a week since the massive fighting broke out, and so far, things were still a bit chaotic as the fighting has yet to go down. While coastlines have been hit the hardest by whoever was attacking the United States, more rural areas that are further away from civilization have - thankfully - been largely ignored in all of the fighting.

In the home of D.J Cobb and his family, everyone had gathered around the T.V as they watched the news for any updates as to what was going on. Jordan was there also, as he had put his bags away and currently had his laptop pulled out, and was searching the web for any information as to what the heck was going on.

"_The fighting has completely overtaken Washington D.C,_" The News Anchor said, "_We… we have reason to believe that the President may have been killed in the attack, but it is still unconfirmed… most of the government has also been listed as missing or killed… and reports from New York shows the United Nations building is burning and is under attack..._"

As the News Anchor said this, they showed signs of battle in numerous well known cities across America. New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, New Jersey, Seattle, even Washington D.C enveloped in war. And it was not just the U.S, but numerous other cities like London, Berlin, and other foreign nations were in the same boat as they were.

"It's like the fucking Apocalypse…" Jordan muttered as he looked at the screen, now wearing a dark green and black camo-colored trench coat he had brought with him. "It's just total chaos out there…"

D.J. nodded as he held his Yugo Mauser M24/47 rifle he got out of the safe in the barn. And his attire had changed as he was wearing his woodland BDU, and Load bearing gear, with a PASGT helmet sitting next to him.

"Yeah… we should be thankful they're not up here as of yet," he said as he looked as his rifle, as well as the weapons held by his father, stepfather, and his uncle. "And all we got are bolt action rifles and pump-action shotguns, while I have stuff for carrying 30 round mags for AKs and AR-15s."

D.J.'s stepfather, Tony Borelli, looked at him. "Hey, you told us before, Drew, any weapon is good as long as you're good with it." he said and D.J. sighed.

"I know that, Tony. Did you manage to get a hold of Bruce, Ralph, Jim, or any of the others?" he said, and his step father nodded.

"Bruce is heading over with his gun collection, Jim is getting his family together, and Ralph says that he's getting edgy." he said, with a sigh. "Just what the hell is going on?"

D.J looked at Jordan "You finding anything on there?" He asked, and he sighed.

"The entire Internet is in a fucking frenzy," he said. "Facebook, Youtube, Tumbler, Twitter and everywhere else is getting flooded with info, and I'm trying to make sense out of all of this." He shook his head. "It's just a total-" however he stopped as he paused, looking at his screen "Huh?"

"What?" D.J asked, looking at his friend. "What did you find?"

"Hang on, give me a sec!" Jordan said as he clicked the mouse a few times. He watched his screen for a few moments, before he recoiled slightly with wide eyes. "What the fuck?" He shouted. "T-That can't be right!"

D.J. and the rest of his family blinked at his reaction.

"What is it Jordan?" said Ronda Borelli, D.J.'s mother and Jordan turned the laptop to him showing what it was. And it was D.J. who was caught off guard as he recoiled.

"The shit!?" he shouted. Paused on a video on the screen, was the image of a battlefield in a city. However walking through the city were a column of men and women in very familiar white and red uniforms. But their attention was immediately drawn to a pair of massive towering 18 meter tall machines walking next to them.

"W-What are _those?_" Ronda shouted, pointing at the two machines.

"GAT-01 Strike Daggers…" Jordan said in a stunned gaze, not believing what he had found. "This… this was just posted a few minutes ago… t-those… those are _Mobile Suits _from _Gundam SEED!_"

The eyes of everyone widened at that.

"You mean that Japanese Cartoon you always watch, Drew," said D.J.'s younger brother, John Ronald Borelli, which caused said Military otaku to sigh in irritation.

"Yes John… But right now, THIS is very bad! If those guys are who me and Jorn think they are... we're so screwed!" he said, and made his family very uneasy.

"Drew, what the hell are you talking about?" said John Bisko, D.J.'s grandfather.

"In Gundam SEED, there are guys wearing those exact same uniforms, and have those exact same machines," Jordan said, still looking scared. "They're the Earth Alliance, and the Atlantic Federation! In short: imagine a fascist, totalitarian, xenophobic version of the United States controlled by Terrorists with Nuclear Weapons! And they're at war with a group of genetically enhanced humans who live in space colonies, called ZAFT, and have _more _of these machines, and some of their leaders would want nothing more than to see Earth _burn, LITERALLY._" He grabbed his head. "Oh shit, oh fucking shit, this isn't good!"

"Whoa wait a minute!" Said Cliff Cobb, D.J.'s biological father. "What does that mean?"

D.J. looked at his father with a grim look.

"It means, dad. Whatever the cause of it," he said, and looked at the image. "We just landed smack dab in the middle of the Cosmic Era of Gundam SEED, more specifically, one of the Bloody Valentine Wars!"

That made everyone really uneasy.

"Y… You don't think it had something to do with that bright wall of light?" Said Monte Bisko, D.J.'s uncle.

"I'm not sure, Uncle Mont," D.J. said, a bit unsurely. "I don't have all the answers."

Before anyone could say, loud slamming on the front door of the house was heard, making everyone jump. D.J. took up his rifle and walked to the door, before he sighed in relief.

"It's just Bruce." he said, and opened the door, for one of Tony's friends, Bruce, who looked as if he ran a marathon. "You okay, Bruce?" he said, and the man nodded.

"Yeah… Drew, get the guns and ammo in my truck," he said and turned to Tony. "You better go with him Tony, I brought everything from the closet."

Tony nodded and he and his stepson went outside to get the firearms. With Jordan, who blinked at hearing the words 'everything from the closet' went to see for himself, and also help.

Fifteen minutes, the three brought in at least twenty guns, which included some SKS's, Mausers, Mosin-Nagants, along with a FN FAL, and a CETME G3. They also brought in enough ammunition to supply a full infantry company.

"Jeez! That's a lot of guns!" Jordan said as he looked at all of the firearms laid out before them now in the living room. "Is this all of it?"

D.J. nodded at that, "Yeah, I told ya before. Bruce is the one guy who knows where to get the guns," he said, as he picked up the FN FAL, before removing the mag, checking if it was loaded, which it was, and took four mags, and placed them in the SAW pouches on his belt.

"Considering who it is, we're up against...I'm not complaining!" Jordan said as he picked up a Yugo SKS, "Though I wish he had a SOCOM M14. No offense old timer."

Bruce shrugged at that. "None taken. I also got some news." he said and the others looked at him.

"What news?" D.J. asked.

"I heard that the US Army is falling back to the southern states," Bruce said. "It seems fighting in Texas, Alabama, the Carolinas and such has died down a bit, and the U.S have managed to maintain control there. But everything from Virginia to Maine is getting taken over by whoever the hell these guys are. As for anyone here in California, whoever hasn't retreated to there are falling back to the Sierras."

Jordan and D.J.'s eyes widened at that.

"Oh shit… that means they're heading straight for us!" D.J. said.

"Well… at least its our guys, and not theirs." Jordan said, "I'd rather not have to live with a bunch of Fascist AF Troops."

"Yeah, but still, if they come in this area, we'll have a 21st Century version of the Pusan Perimeter or the Battle of the Bulge." D.J. said, "And I, for one, do NOT wanna through the shit the troops within the encirclement they went through back then."

Jordan nodded at that, having read what the 101st Airborne and the ROK and U.S. troops in those respective battles went through.

"You're right about that." he said and looked at Bruce. "Do you know which units are coming in this area?"

"From what I've heard, it sounds like the remnants of the I Marine Expeditionary Force, along with the 40th Infantry Division, and elements of the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment." Bruce said, "Along with what's left of the Air Force that managed to evacuate out of Air Force Bases like Travis, Vandenberg, Beagle, Edwards, and Los Angeles. They should be moving into the area right now."

The others were all stunned by that.

"I always predicted a foreign invasion but this is ridiculous!" D.J. said, but then Bruce spoke again.

"It gets worse, apparently they're not the only ones as over thousands of refugees are moving with the military from the coast." he said and everyone immediately paled at that.

"Oh shit…" Jordan muttered. "That's just fucking _perfect,_ Refugee's already… we're gonna get swamped with people in just a matter of days at this rate."

"Not to mention the military will be desperate for troops, so they'll probably draft or ask for volunteers among the Refugees," said D.J. with a sigh. "It would most likely be the former than the latter."

"But what about Daniel?" said Cliff. "The news said that light came from Afghanistan. That place is already a shithole with the Taliban around, now he and our troops already there have to deal with these assholes?!"

"As much as I hate to say it, we can't worry about Daniel right now," Jordan said, shaking his head. "There's nothing we can do to help him or find out how he's doing, all we can do is make sure we ourselves survive this shitstorm. We can only hope its not nearly as bad over there like it is here."

"I hope you're right Jorn." D.J. said. "But since Afghanistan is also a part of the Equilateral Union, the fighting has most probably stopped."

He then sighed. "Of course, we don't know how the Marines, Army and the Air Force left here in California would last, considering the Atlantic Federation has MOBILE SUITS that could probably take a hit from a M1 Abrams main gun!"

"Well, considering the fact that a ZGMF-1017 GiNN uses 75mm rounds in its machine gun, and it does okay, while the Abrams use 105mm to 120mm rounds…" Jordan suggested, "We at least have a fighting chance I guess… if the Earth Federation from MSG could fight Zeon for over a year with conventional vehicles until they got Mobile Suits, so could the U.S Army against the Earth Alliance assuming they can keep their cool."

"I hope your right Jorn, I really hope you are."

* * *

**Meanwhile, 4 miles above L.A. **

* * *

A single object, glowing bright red was dropping through the atmosphere of the planet, rapidly descending over the skies of California. It soon broke cloud cover, before the object appeared to break apart. Inside the object appeared four ZGMF-600 GuAIZ's, each one colored black with grey joints and a cobalt trim. Fell down in a perfect formation before they lined up into a V formation, their thrusters activating as they began to soar over the skies of California.

"_I always wanted to visit California." _said one of the pilots, _"Just not under THESE circumstances."_

"_I know what you mean, from what we saw of the footage, it's looks like something from that old film, Battle: Los Angeles." _said another pilot in a female voice.

"_Let's hope we can find out what's going on down there,_" A third male voice said, "_Maybe help whoevers giving the AF such a hard time here. Any sign of the Justice? They said we'd meet up with him after we entered the atmosphere..._"

"_Nothing yet, Boss." _said the pilot of the fourth machine._ "But - Wait! I'm picking up something..."_

It was a few moments before the ZAFT pilot spoke again.

"_Hey Commander! Listen to this!" _

In the lead machine, Wilson Collin, the Commander of the Collin team blinked as he tuned in the frequency.

"_...argent Baker of Tango Company! We've got shit tons of those bastards surrounding us!_" A voice shouted on the Comm. "_They got more of those Giant fucking Robots! We need backup here now! Air Support, Naval Support, don't care what!_"

"_I swear man, it's the North Koreans, I'm telling ya!_"

"_Not now Johnson!_"

"_Fuck! Here they come again!" _

Wilson blinked when he heard the words "Giant Robot", which meant they under attack by Mobile Suits.

"Where's the signal coming from, Franz?" he asked one of his wingmen.

"_Tracking…_" Franz said. "_Got it! Their coming from about five miles from here, the old Griffith Observatory in L.A. We can get there in a few minutes if we gun it!_"

"_What about the Justice?_" asked the female pilot.

"We'll worry about that later," Wil said. "Hopefully he'll hear our radio chatter and come investigate. For now, let's go help those poor bastards."

With that, the four GuAIZ changed their trajectory and headed toward the Griffith Observatory.

* * *

**Just offshore**

**BGM 'The Sun's gone Dim' by Johann Johannsson**

* * *

The ZGMF-X09A Justice stood on it's flight lifter as it hovered just off the coast of L.A.

In the cockpit, Athrun Zala could see the smoke plumes coming from the city. Buildings burning, tracer rounds flying across the skies, and explosions still going off on the ground. The ZAFT pilot couldn't take his eyes off of the blazes he saw before him, ever since he joined ZAFT he had never once seen a sight of total and absolute devastation and destruction, not even the Bloody Valentine was like this.

He then maneuvered his Gundam forward, keeping an eye out for Atlantic Federation Forces that would try to shoot him down if they saw him. That is if they can.

As he flew over the city he saw many abandoned or destroyed vehicles littering the streets, along with… dead bodies.

However then his radio began to pick both AF, and other chatter.

"_Incoming! Here they come again!_"

"_Fuck! Look at the size of that damn thing!_"

"_I've got tone! Fox Two!_"

"_Enemy Tanks! Where are the Daggers?_"

"_Just keep the damn pressure on them!_"

"_Here comes more of them - wait, those machines look different! Who are they?_"

"_Shit! Those look like ZAFT GiNNs!"_

Athrun perked at that, and immediately, set out the channel he was given to contact the team he was suppose to meet.

"Attention this is ZAFT Special Forces Agent, Athrun Zala. Collin Team, do you read me?" he said into the radio, and waited for a moment until he got a response.

"_...well, look who finally decided to show up!_" a voice came through. "_This is Wilson Collin, leader of Collin Team! Glad you could make it to the party, Special Agent Zala!_"

"What's your current position?" he asked as he continued to fly over the city.

"_We're attacking AF Forces around the Griffith Observatory,_" Wilson said. "_We've got a bunch of those guys being assaulted by AF Mobile Suits and Infantry, so we decided to give them a hand! Sure could use your help up here, sir!_"

Athrun then pressed a few buttons as he logged in the coordinates into the computer and maneuvered his machine in that direction.

"Commander Collin, I'm inbound to your position now. Hang tight!"

"_Don't worry! We're not going anywhere!" _

* * *

**Griffith Observatory**

* * *

The men of Tango Company, of what had used to be the 18th Cavalry Regiment of the California National Guard, were having a crappy, but also weird day. They were normally assigned to help in keeping peace within the city, when that damn wall of light suddenly went through L.A. a week ago. And now, here they were, fighting an enemy that appeared out of nowhere, and after having lost the rest of the Regiment, found themselves here, with the only remaining M60A3 tank of their unit still running but running out of shells. And now these bastards were closing in on them with those damn giant-fucking-robots.

Then if that weren't enough four more, different types, of giant robots arrived and started kicking the shit out of those assholes.

The men of Tango Company just watched as one of the unknown Machines landed, as the more humanoid one took out a freaking lightsaber, and in a stabbing motion charged forward with its thrusters. However the first machine simply side-stepped and raised the large shield attached to its left forearm, activating a pair of lightsabers from it in a claw-like fashion, and sliced the hand off. The machine turned it head and fired off some sort of high caliber cannon at the mono-eyed machine, but the Black and Cobalt machine just stabbed it the torso with its own lightsabers and kicked it down. Launching back up into the air before the machine exploded.

"Okay…" One of the soldiers said as they saw that happen "That was actually kinda awesome!"

"Shut up, Johnson!" said First Sergeant Baker, the only highest ranking soldier left in Tango Company. "The rest of you start shooting back!"

The National Guardsmen did just that as they began to pour lead in the red and white uniformed soldiers who were beginning to retreat from the ZAFT machines.

The U.S. troopers then began to advance as the unknown enemy began to retreat from the area, while the blue and white human robots were busy dealing with the cyclops, who were also beginning to fall back as well.

Then, the sound of engines was heard overhead as the Troops looked up, and saw another machine fly overhead - this one colored crimson red and flying on top of a large box-like aircraft, before it jumped off and the object it was flying on attached itself onto his back. It then drew out two of the Lightsabers, and disarmed - literally disarmed - the closest enemy Machine before kicking it away.

"Holy SHIT!" shouted another Trooper.

"Stay focused!" shouted Baker and they kept firing at the enemy troops who were by now in full-panicked-retreat. When the last of the enemy had run, Baker began signaling his men to stop firing. "Cease fire! Cease fire!"

He then watched as the newcomers dealt with the last of those other machines and then headed in their direction before stopping in front of the curious Guardsmen.

In the cockpit of the Justice, Athrun looked at the men in surprise and confusion. He zoomed in on their uniforms, and saw not only were they in old Army Combat Uniforms (ACU), but on their shoulder patches where the images of the old United States flag on them.

'_United States?_' he thought. '_But they've been defunct since the Reconstruction War ended… who are these guys?_'

However his thoughts were interrupted when he heard Collin's voice on his GuAIZ's loudspeaker.

"_Who's in charge?" _

Athrun then saw one of the 'U.S.' soldiers step forward and began to wave to show he was the leader. He saw that his rank insignia identifies him as a Company First Sergeant.

"That would be me," he said. "First Sergeant Fredrick J. Baker, U.S Army Tango Company, 18th Cavalry Regiment of the California National Guard. Though I am glad for your assistance… please tell me who the _fuck _you people are?"

Now that threw Athrun, through a loop. These people have never heard of ZAFT?

He could hear Collin sigh at that. "_I think it's best we talk back at your CP?" _

The First Sergeant groaned a bit at that. "Follow us back to the Observatory…" he said, as he and the troopers returned back to the building, which was now sporting plenty of battle damage. The four ZAFT GuAIZ's and the Justice soon followed close behind. Athrun's sensors went off, as he spotted an old M60 Patton Tank next to the building, its turret facing them but not firing - obviously making sure they didn't try anything funny. However Athrun knew there wasn't much it could do - to the Justice at least, as did the other Collin team pilots.

He then spotted two of the U.S. Guardsmen escorting a group of 8 Atlantic Federation foot soldiers, and one in a pilot suit. He then saw one of the soldiers stop the group, before looking the group of prisoners, up and down, before he saw the man's face turn a bit pale, and realization before backing up and darting back into the building.

"What was that about?" Athrun asked no one. However the First Sergeant saw this, and groaned.

"Johnson, go see what's wrong with Jenkins," he said. "He's been acting weird all day."

"Yes sir!" Johnson said with a salute before he proceeded to track down his friend and fellow Guardsman, while another one took his place to keep an eye on the captured AF Troops. He then spotted two examining the pilot's helmet, both with confused, but intrigued faces.

Other soldiers were examining captured weapons and other equipment they took off the AF soldiers, more specifically, the firearms.

The Mobile suits then stopped and placed themselves at the four corners of the building, while the Justice stopped in front. Athrun sighed as he made sure his sidearm was holstered before he deactivated the PS armor of the Justice, and opened the hatch. He grabbed the decent cable as it brought him down to the ground.

The U.S Army troops kept their eyes on Athrun once he descended, while others were intrigued at how the Mobile Suit seemed to change colors as it powered down.

"Now that's a bit… interesting." said one of the troopers and Athrun soon touched the ground.

Many of the Guardsmen were confused as to how short Athrun was. But when he proceeded to take off his helmet, their eyes widened the size of saucers, as they saw he was just a teenager.

"What the hell?"

"He's just a kid!"

"Shit, my son's older than him!"

The First Sergeant was also shocked as he looked at the young man - who looked no older than 15 - was apparently the one who piloted that giant machine that decimated the other machines. "_You _piloted that thing?" He asked incredulously, pointing at the Justice.

Athrun looked a bit surprised, however he nodded, "Yes, I am." he said, "My name is Athrun Zala, Special Forces Agent of the Zodiac Alliance of Freedom Treaty, or ZAFT."

The First Sergeant groaned as he held the bridge of his nose in frustration.

"Okay, that's the tenth fucking time I heard that… Can somebody PLEASE give me a fucking clear solid answer as to what this fucking ZAFT is!?" The Guardsmen shouted out loud, until Collin, who walked forward with his helmet off, showing his dark grey hair, and neon green eyes stepped forward.

"ZAFT is the military organization and the official military of the PLANT Colonies," he said. "Unlike the Alliance's OMNI Enforcer, we are more or less a militia made up of civilian volunteers, and don't use a genuine and formal rank structure. But as you can see, we are more than capable of taking on the EA's military with our Mobile Suits."

The Sergeant looked at Collins, before he sighed. "Well, it's the best answer I've gotten all day," he said. "All of the prisoners we get keep saying shit about 'Patchworkers' and 'Space Monsters'... don't know what the hell their blabbering about, you look human enough to me." However he then looked at Athrun. "But… _kids?_ Really?"

Collin quirked an eyebrow that. "Wait, you've never heard of Coordinators?" he asked incredulously, and everyone of the soldiers began to murmur to each other.

"Coordinator?"

"What the heck is a Coordinator?"

"Beats the hell out of me."

These were the comments that Athrun and Collin and they were completely surprised by what they were hearing. However, their attention was diverted when the one called Johnson, was bringing the soldier that freaked out, but his eyes widened again when he saw Athrun, which confused the teen even more.

"Dude! Cut that out, it's freaking us all out!" said Johnson as he smacked Jenkins on the back. "Now, show the Sarge what you shown me."

Jenkins nodded as he walked towards the Sergeant, still keeping an eye on Athrun before he brought out his I-Pad. "S-Sarge..." he said. "Y-You're gonna want to see this..."

The Sergeant blinked, but sighed as he walked towards the Private. "What is it, Jenkins?" He asked. "Now is not the time-"

"Just look!" Jenkins hissed as he showed him his I-Pad, making sure that neither Athrun or the ZAFT pilots could see it. The Sergeant looked at it with a raised eyebrow, before he blinked. "The fuck is this…?" He asked as he looked at the screen, before glancing at Athrun again, and then back to the screen. "Is this some sort of Joke?"

"No, sir." Jenkins whispered, "I wish it was but… I'm not fucking with you right now."

Baker could only blink and looked back at Athrun before he continued look at the info before him before he sighed.

"Man, this is so fucked up," he said, and the ZAFT pilots only blinked at the Guardsmen's behavior.

"Is there… something you want to share with us?" Wilson said.

The Sergeant looked at Jenkins, who gave an unsure shrug, before the Sergeant sighed before he motioned for Wilson to approach. The ZAFT pilot looked at Athrun, nodding before he approached the two. Jenkins tapped on his Ipad again, pulling up the file as Wilson looked at it.

However, as soon as he looked at it, the ZAFT pilot blinked in confusion. "The Hell?" he muttered, as he looked at the file on the screen. Titled under 'Gundam Wiki' and below it was a file which read "Gundam SEED" where there was an image of two Mobile Suits - one the ZGMF-X10A Freedom, the other the ZGMF-X09A Justice, and two people in front of each mobile suit. He couldn't tell who the first person was, but he immediately recognized the second as none other than Athrun Zala.

The ZAFT commander looked at Jenkins before looking at Athrun, who was looking at him with a confused expression.

"Uh… sir?" said Athrun, and before Wilson could speak, he saw Jenkins give him a look and a hand signal that told him to keep quiet.

Wilson looked at him for a moment, before glancing back at the Ipad before groaning. "I want an explanation after this," he muttered to the two men before he turned to Athrun. "It's nothing, Athrun," he said. "They're just as confused as we are as to what's going on here. They've never encountered Mobile Suits before."

Athrun was a little suspicious at that, but decided to keep quiet for the moment, and just go with the flow.

"Alright," he said, and then said. "But why are you dressed as an army that went defunct over 7 decades ago?"

The Sergeant looked at Athrun, and sighed "Son, I'll tell ya once I figure out what's going on myself," he said. "But as far as I know, the U.S Army hasn't been defunct since the American Civil War."

Now Athrun was completely lost as he scratched the back of his head in irritation.

"Man, this is getting us nowhere," he said. "Is there anyone who can tell us what's going on here!?"

"I don't know," The Sergeant said. "The President and most of the heads of government in D.C. got killed when the attack began, so we have no idea who's really running the show now. I just got orders from CA ARNG to fall back to the Sierras Mountains, it's the one place we can fall back to since the Southern States are out of our reach…" he sighed "There is no way we can make it on our own with just one Tank, but… I hate to ask, but if you and your… Mobile Suits, right? If you can help us get to the Sierras, I'll try to get you connected with someone who _might _be able to tell you what's going on."

Wilson thought about that, before he nodded. "Alright, let's just hope we get our answers there," he said, and turned to Athrun. "And with that Mobile Nuke Suit of yours, we should be able to get past anything the AF throws at us.

Johnson and Baker both became unnerved at the word 'Nuke' mixed in with Mobile Suit.

"Say what?" Baker asked. "What was that about a Nuke?"

"Don't worry," Athrun said, "My machine is nuclear powered, and is equipped with Radiation Shields so anyone around it won't grow any extra arms." He added the last part with a small smirk.

"Kid, that is not funny!" Johnson said in worry. "The last thing we need is a walking nuke next to us and possibly blowing up and taking us with it!"

"It's got failsafes, don't worry," Athrun said as he turned and headed back towards the Justice. "The Justice is likely the best Mobile Suit in the area, we'll get you to your comrades, we promise."

Johnson was a little uneasy about that, but decided that these guys was better than no support.

"Sigh, what the hell…" he said. "And when do we leave, Sarge?" he asked Baker.

"ASAP," The Sergeant said, as he stepped forward "Alright, everyone mount up, and get your gear together! Get the trucks going, and load up the prisoners! Marco, get your tank moving, we leave for the Sierras in five!"

With that the remnants of the 18th Cavalry went about to get their gear together and head for the Sierra Nevada Mountains, while the prisoners were loaded up into a covered M35 truck, with two guards jumping in as well. The others mounted in their other vehicles such as Strykers, and HUMVEEs.

"They move fast," said Athrun, as he grabbed onto his accent cable as he was carried up back into the cockpit of the Justice. Once he hopped back in he put the machine back through its startup sequence, as the Machine came to life again as its PS armor turned on.

Soon the small convoy of Tango Company, along with their Mobile suit escort proceeded to leave the Griffith Observatory with the Justice providing air cover.

* * *

**Meanwhile, Somewhere in Colorado**

* * *

A young man of 27 years of age, almost 28, with chocolate brown hair styled in a buzz cut, a chocolate brown moustache, amethyst eyes, and Caucasian skin, who had a height of 5'11", sat in the back of one of the refugee trucks, thinking back on just how crazy things had gotten over the past week.

After that light had passed over everything and the unknown soldiers had appeared, almost everyone had been evacuated to the nearest military base - which had turned out to be the Air Force Academy for him. Unfortunately, there had been skirmishes along the way, and the man's parents had been killed as they got him to safety. With their loss, he'd decided to discard his old name, having no living family to tie him to with it anymore, and took up his Internet Alias of Takeshi Yamato as his only name from that point on.

When the order had been given for the remaining military forces to start regrouping, the path to the Southern Forces had been blocked by the unknowns - rather, the Atlantic Federation, as Takeshi had recognized after seeing the uniforms of the enemy soldiers and a GAT-01 Strike Dagger in footage from one of the fights. So, the base commander had decided to make for the Sierra Nevadas, crossing Utah and Nevada to get there - and he'd decided to take the refugees who were sheltering in the Air Force Academy, as well.

And so, here Takeshi was, riding with several other refugees who had lost homes and loved ones, being escorted by several tanks, helicopters, and even a few F-15's and F/A-18's, on the way to the 'rendezvous point'. Takeshi was slightly worried, though - they'd passed through the Rocky Mountains already, and were in a flat area south of Grand Junction, near the border with Utah - a prime spot for an attack as it offered little defensive cover. The soldiers knew this, as well, though - they had Army, Air Force, and Colorado National Guard forces as an escort, and soldiers from all three groups had their heads on a swivel.

That didn't make him feel any better though.

"Bandit! Nine o'clock! Heads down!" Shouted one of the National Guardsmen, and Takeshi looked up as a single F-7D Spearhead flew right towards them before unleashing lead with its vulcan guns, just barely missing the convoy.

However that was not the end as a large transport flew flew over the area, and the rear cargo hatch opened and Takeshi's heart sank at what came out.

It was a GAT-01A1 '105' Dagger, equipped with what looked to be a Sword Striker Pack, leading two regular Strike Daggers. They leapt out of their transport to the ground, landing directly in front of the convoy's path.

For a few seconds, Takeshi despaired, knowing that the weapons of their escort wouldn't do much against the Strike Daggers. But that despair quickly gave way to rage and determination. Those bastards in the Earth Alliance had killed the only family he had left. He wasn't going to let them kill him, too - not without a fight.

'_Still,_' he thought, '_What can I do? Even if I were a trained soldier, the only way to reliably kill a Mobile Suit is…_' he trailed off as he came to a realization, and a plan started forming. '_…with another Mobile Suit…_'

"Hey!" he called out to the National Guardsmen closest to him. "Do you guys have any Grappling Hooks with you?"

The Guardsmen looked at Takeshi like he lost a screw. "What the hell are those gonna do?" he said.

And Takeshi pointed toward the 105. "Because we're taking _**that!**_" he said. "If our weapons aren't effective against their Mobile Suits, the only thing for it is to take those Mobile Suits and use them ourselves!" He steeled himself. "I may not be a trained soldier, but if you can get me into the cockpit of the 105 Dagger with the sword, I think I can figure out how to work it!"

The Guardsman looked at Takeshi, and then looked back up at the 105 Dagger which was beginning to engage in combat. He - like Takeshi - was a Gundam Fan, and knew damn well what a Mobile Suit could do. And he had spoken to Takeshi in private about what they knew - and he also knew that Mobile Suits were the only thing that could take on other Mobile Suits effectively.

The Guardsman looked back at Takeshi, before he groaned. "Alright, but I still think you're Crazy!" he said, before he hollered out, "Wilkins! Tarkov! Bring out the Grappling Hooks and the Mortars!" He got curious glances from his men. "Just do it!"

Takeshi leapt out of the Refugee Truck, his momentum carrying him into the Jeep with the Guardsmen. "Crazy or not, it's really our best option," he remarked. "We just need to get onto that machine, open its cockpit, kick out the pilot, and then get me into it." He then grinned in excitement. "Man, this is such a Kamina Moment!"

"Ya think!?" shouted one of the Guardsmen as he hit the gas, and the vehicle sped forward. The Guardsman hit the Radio. "Bravo 2-3, we need a distraction!" he said. "Try to distract that big one with the sword for us!"

"_Copy that Alpha, Bravo 2-3 providing fire support,_" Came the reply, as two of the Strykers armed with BGM-71 TOW Missile Launchers turned their respective launchers in the direction of the 105 Dagger, and fired. The two missiles soared towards the enemy Mobile Suit, guided by the controller. This caught the Dagger pilot's attention as he turned, and fires his 40mm "Igelstellung II" CIWS guns, which gunned the missile down out of the sky. However they did their job as the Dagger made its way towards the Strykers, unaware of the fast moving vehicle approaching behind it.

As they moved, Takeshi made ready with his Grappling Hook device. "Only going to have one shot at this…" he muttered. "Still, opening one Mobile Suit is the same as another, and it should be similar to the Strike Gundam's from what I saw at the end of Episode Five…" He grinned. "Biggest problem might be needing to tweak the OS, but it shouldn't be too hard…"

"Just don't get yourself killed, damnit!" the Guardsman shouted. "I still think you're crazy!"

Takeshi just grinned. He was really getting into this, given that it was such a Kamina moment. "Maybe, but there are times when Crazy works where Sane doesn't!" As he said this, they pulled up underneath the 105 Dagger, slowing down to match its speed, and Takeshi fired his Grappling Hook, the hook part catching just above the cockpit. He quickly reeled himself up, ascending up to right beside the cockpit, and when he found the emergency cockpit release, he used his free hand to activate it.

And suddenly, the front hatch of the cockpit opened up, and Takeshi appeared in front of the pilot in a orange and white Normal Suit, who looked at Takeshi stunned. "What the Fuck?" he shouted. "Who the- what are you doing?"

"Taking this," Takeshi replied with a grin, reaching in and undoing the surprised pilot's safety restraints, before hauling the guy out of the cockpit. "You're not gonna need it anymore!" With that, he tossed the pilot out of the cockpit, before hopping in himself, closing the hatch behind him, and quickly strapping in.

Outside, the Guardsman saw this, his eyes widening as the AF pilot fell out and Takeshi took his place in the Dagger. "Holy shit, that worked..." he muttered. "But does he know how to fly it?"

Inside, Takeshi was familiarizing himself with the controls. "Looks about the same as any older MS Cockpit," he muttered. "Handlebars, throttle assembly like most CE machines, two sets of foot pedals, one for the legs and one for the verniers… I can work with this." He then brought out the keyboard and started checking the OS. "Luckily it's a Natural-Friendly OS, I can work it just fine, and make adjustments later on to fit personal preferences. Let's see, stats… sweet, it's one of the few with Transphase Armor! That'll be handy - and I have enough battery power to last for a while. OK, let's do this!"

The Dagger turned to face its Strike Dagger former comrades, drew its Schwert Gewehr Anti-Ship Sword, and began charging.

The two Strike Daggers turned when they saw their supposed leader charging them. "_W-what's wrong, Commander?_" one of them asked.

Takeshi, on an impulse, set his machine's communications on Speaker Mode. "WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK I AM SLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!" he yelled out, bringing his blade down and bisecting the first Strike Dagger. It went up in a rather large fireball as he turned and charged the second one. "I WON'T LET YOU DO AS YOU PLEASE ANYMORE KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIICK!" he yelled out once more as he kicked the Strike Dagger right in the crotch. However that was more or less a distraction as he picked out one of his machine's Beam Boomerangs, and using it as a beam saber sliced off the head and right arm of the Strike Dagger in two simple swings.

Down below, the Guardsmen and other military personnel - as well as civilians - watched in shock as the Sword Dagger quickly annihilated the two Strike Daggers almost effortlessly. "Ho-ly shit…" the Guardsman who helped Takeshi muttered. "I didn't think he could actually pull it off…"

Takeshi grinned as the second Strike Dagger collapsed to the ground, watching as the transport and F-7D flew away. '_That's right, bastards,_' he thought. '_Run. Run like the cowards you are. We have a Mobile Suit of our own now._

'_And you won't have as easy a time as you've been having any more._'

* * *

**Meanwhile, near Manitoba/Ontario border**

* * *

A small group of Canadian Armed Forces personnel drove through the forest, led by one of the few Leopard 1s to survive the initial attack. The tank wasn't driven by military personnel, though, but by three civilians. The driver was a tall 20 year old man with brown hair and green eyes by the name of Dylan Jackson. In the turret, a shorter 19 year old blonde with blue eyes named Tanner Armstrong. Sitting on top of the turret with his legs inside the hatch and wearing four (yes, FOUR) sweaters was a brown/blonde haired, blue-eyed 21 year old and unofficial 'commander' of the convoy named Ronald Pinkerton.

It had NOT been a good week for him or his friends. While he was on his way to his grandmother's for one of his visits, all hell broke loose. Fortunately, Ron lived near a Canadian Tire, which also stocked firearms. With what he knew were OMNI Enforcer linear tanks and F-7Ds attacking the nearby base, and causing all kinds of hell, the store (and North Bay in general) was in chaos, so Ron had managed to get his hands on a Remington 1100 shotgun and a civilian clone of the AR-15, along with ammunition for both.

Of course, the bad news didn't end there as he saw a Strike Dagger land on his house less than a kilometer away. And his brother was still there, to the best of his knowledge. That was more or less how he spent the first day of the invasion. He managed to get linked up with the survivors of the attack on CFB North Bay and found out that none of them had any IDEA what they were up against. Thankfully, they now had an expert.

They didn't believe him at first, but after seeing the Daggers, they had little choice. At this point, though, the city was lost, so they began to retreat, linking up with a refugee convoy that just so happened to have Dylan and Tanner in it. During the week-long trek toward Manitoba, a group of LAV IIIs and three of Canada's Leopard C2 main battle tanks joined them, and most of their crews were still shell shocked over their steamrolling a few days before.

'_Seriously, it takes a civilian anime/military otaku to get through this shit?_' Ron thought to himself. '_My God, the Armed Forces fucking SUCK._' Ron took charge of the group, seeing as he had a few ideas how to fight back. His plans were based on MS IGLOO: Gravity Front tactics: anti-tank missiles were repurposed, and those delaying tactics managed to keep OMNI Enforcer away for a while.

But they had lost control over the skies, and Ron had long discounted the CF-18 Hornet (the Canadian designation for the McDonnell Douglas/Boeing F/A-18A/B Hornets used by the RCAF) as 'the worst pieces of shit in the history of the Canadian military'. He HATED the Hornet in Canadian service. It wasn't meant for land-use: it was a fucking carrier fighter/attacker! As such, the Spearheads mowed them down as if they weren't even there.

The USAF forces (and any foreign forces that were in the area, as Maple Flag was due to begin sometime that month) had a better time, but even Ron's preferred fighters, the F/A-22 Raptor and F-15 Eagle, were still having a lot of trouble against the Alliance's Spearheads. Though they've taken down a lot from what he's heard, for the most part all those brave pilots did was buy the ground forces time to get the fuck out of there.

And even when the fighters actually seemed to be winning… the shinigami arrived. When the Army troops asked why he called the Daggers 'shinigami', which was Japanese for 'Gods of Death', he told them the backstory for MS IGLOO 2, where Zeon's Zaku II MSs were called death gods. Seeing as the OVA was never dubbed into English, the Japanese voice actors always said 'shinigami'. The term stuck.

Ron scowled as they rolled past the wreck of a Armee 'de l'Air Mirage 2000, which had been shot down not by cannon fire, but by a Dagger's beam rifle. "This is just WRONG." Tanner muttered.

Ron glanced at Tanner from his perch. "Tanner, the French Air Force is known for getting their asses kicked," he said, with a sigh. "The Nazis did it during the Second World War. OMNI Enforcer's just joining the list of people who've kicked their asses. We're having better luck down here."

"Only because you have an idea how to fight those things!" Tanner snapped back, but Ron shook his head before pulling out a pair of binoculars. He had little hope of defeating the Earth Alliance. While he liked the idea of a united world government, he wanted Blue Cosmos out. The ideal Alliance would look something like the one from Babylon Five before the shit hit the fan in Season 2.

But at the moment, he was focused on getting to CFB Edmonton before swinging down to the Sierra Nevada mountains to join up with what was left of the US military in that area. "It's not like -" He began before his eyes widened "FUCK ME! ALL VEHICLES, HALT!" He shouted, banging on the top of their vehicle, signalling Dylan to stop as the Leopard came to a stop.

Dylan poked his head out of the driving compartment. "What's happening?" He asked.

"We're fucked." Ron said, as he tossed the field glasses at Dylan, who caught them and looked through them, seeing what Ron saw: a team of GAT-01A1 "105" Daggers. There were four of them, and Ron had long since explained the difference between the two machines: the backpacks. One of them had what Ron called an 'Aile Pack' while the other two were armed with 'Launcher Packs' and the last one had a 'Sword Pack'. "As you can see, we are VERY fucked." He muttered.

OMNI Enforcer ground forces were on their asses and those Daggers were blocking the only escape route they had. '_I can't risk the rest of the civilians, and we have ZERO air support._' He thought with a growl. '_Not that it'll help: Mobile Suits beat EVERYTHING._'

However, he blinked as he then remembered IGLOO 1: The Hidden One Year War Episode 2. '_The fucking EFGF could steal Zaku IIs and a Zaku II Commander Type,_' he thought. '_What in the hell is stopping us from stealing OMNI Enforcer Daggers?_' Of course, they had one problem: Mobile Suits were like wolves. They were pack hunters.

'_We need to split the bastards up._' He concluded before he shouted "Lieutenant, get your ass over here! I've got a plan!"

The only survivor of 22 Wing/CFB North Bay's command staff got out of one of the LAV IIIs and ran toward the Leopard. 2nd Lieutenant Kristina Michaels technically commanded the whole group, but she passed her authority to Ron, seeing as he knew how to fight the fucking monsters. "What the hell's going on?" She asked.

"Four 105 Daggers, dead ahead," Ron said, pointing forward.

"Shit!" Kristina cursed. "And we can't go around them?!"

"No, and plowing through them is futile," he said. "We need to split the fuckers up."

She glanced at the younger civilian. "Ok, I know you're about to say something crazy," she said. "Half your plans are made of insanity."

"We're going to capture them," Ron said with a small smirk. "Intact. Turnabout's fair play, ne?" She was right: it was insane. But he was right: they needed those things in order to fight back, or at the very least get to Edmonton.

The Lieutenant sighed "What's the plan?" She asked.

"The LAVs and two of the Leopards get their attention while me, Dylan and Tanner hijack three of them." Ron said, "We're the only ones with any idea how to operate them, anyways."

"Only because you've been telling them about this… Gundam shit!" Kristina shouted.

That brought up a sour point. Ron was the only Gundam fan in the group. Dylan and Tanner were anime fans, but had never even heard of Gundam until this debacle began.

"Either way, we get those 105s and we head north." Ron said, "Saskatchewan is too open: we'll be walking target practice on those fields. Nunavut and NWT will provide better cover."

"You've never even left Ontario before: how would you know that?" She asked, and Ron scoffed.

"I studied." He said, "Get ready!"

* * *

**Near the 105 Dagger team**

* * *

Luckily, the 105s hadn't noticed the convoy, and they wouldn't for some time. The Canadian military was giving them little trouble, seeing as their equipment was both out of date and nearly harmless to modern, Cosmic Era vehicles.

Close by, and near one of the trees, Ron pulled out his AR-15 clone (now fit with a hunting scope) and spotted something very fortunate which brought a large smirk onto his face. The pilots were out of their machines.

"Looks like my plan is redundant." He said.

"_Ron, what the hell's going on?_" Dylan's voice came through the Radio. Ron sighed as he fumbled with the radio. "Dylan, they aren't even in their Mobile Suits!" He whispered "Who's got the DMR?"

"_We don't HAVE a DMR._"

"Sniper rifle?"

"_Kristina gave me a C3A1._"

Ron chuckled. Tanner had the Canadian version of the Parker Hale M82 sniper rifle. "Alright," he said in approval. "Aim for the head. I'll take out some: I'm closer and I've got the semi-auto." Ron took aim at one of the pilots. He had lost his brother in the first day, and he had no idea if anyone else was still alive. Time for payback. '_First time actually killing someone,_' he thought with a small frown before he shook it off. '_I'll think about it later._' He had no time to think. He had to shoot.

He pulled the trigger shortly before Tanner fired, and while Ron killed his target, Tanner crippled his with a shot to the knee.

"What the hell?!" The pilot shouted, as he fell down, before Ron fired two more shots, both hitting the pilots and downing them. "Fucking Blue Cosmos bastards," he growled out as he pulled out his least favorite weapon, which also happened to be the Browning Hi-Power 9mm handgun, and walked toward the last pilot.

"Fuck!" the Pilot cursed, glaring up at Ron as he cradled his leg. "A fucking Canadian with brains?!"

"When you go to hell, deliver a message for me," he said as he took aim at the man's head. "Tell him the Crimson Fucker sent you!" He fired, blowing the man's head off. That little line was from what quickly became Ron's favorite abridged series.

"We're clear!" He shouted out, "Dylan, Tanner, get your asses over here!"

His two oldest friends broke cover and ran toward the Mobile Suits. "I can't believe that worked!" Tanner shouted.

"It ain't over yet," Ron said as he holstered his pistol. "Lock and load: time for a crash course in MS piloting."

* * *

**Patriot-112: And that ends the prologue!**

**117Jorn: We hope you all enjoyed the first chapter! 16,300 Words right there! **

**Ron the True Fan: And the death begins. (Merkava's gun fires) Who the fuck is in my tank?! (Goes inside) Oh, great. My friends hijacked my tank.**

**117Jorn: There Gonna be a problem? (Enters GOUF Ignited and arms weapons)**

**Patriot-112: As long as they don't hit my new ride, I'm good. (Heads into '105' Dagger Aile, and readies up) Let's FLY!**

**Takeshi Yamato: Definitely enjoying this one so far - look forward to future entries, especially if that one idea of mine gets off the ground. :D**

**Patriot-112: Hopefully, yes. (Dagger takes off) **

**Everyone: JA NE!**


	2. Chapter 1

**Patriot-112: (Aile 105 Dagger lands) What's up, Peeps!? **

**Takeshi Yamato: We have a new chapter for you!**

**117Jorn: (GOUF Ignited dropped next to Dagger) And its a Doozy! Let's Begin!**

* * *

_Chapter 2: Black Swords of Freedom_

* * *

**May 18th 2014 AD/CE 71**

**San Joaquin Pocket - Fresno & Madera Counties**

**California, United States**

* * *

In just over a week, the Atlantic Federation have now gained, or regained in their opinion, almost all of the United States, except for the Southeastern States, including Texas, the Sierra Nevadas, and a few strongholds in the Rockies and other small areas. Almost 55 percent of the U.S. Armed Forces were either killed, captured, or missing. America's southern neighbor, Mexico was in a total state of anarchy, as its government completely collapsed, and its entire military was destroyed.

Their northern neighbor, Canada, was in a similar boat: most of the second largest country on Earth on the eastern side, from Newfoundland and Labrador to the majority of Ontario, but someone was causing a great deal of problems for OMNI Enforcer, delaying their advance, but only by one or two days. Their military was no longer numbered in the tens of thousands, but in less than 9000 men and women. As such, all military units, foreign or otherwise, were given orders to get their assets to the Sierra Nevada mountains.

However, this was a BIT of a problem for survivors in California, as OMNI Enforcer was circling in and calmly blowing their asses up with rail gun and beam rounds.

There was a phrase for this:

Turkey shoot.

In the Pocket itself, Marines, Army troops, and as well as any Air Force personnel who were lucky to escape from the other Air Bases, and couldn't go anywhere else, were busy putting up defenses, along with help from civilians who wanted to do something to help. Even with this brave and rather formidable defence, OMNI Enforcer was still dealing heavy damage: even if they weren't killing the troops and drafted civilians, they WERE slowly removing their ability to resist as AFVs were turned into molten wreckage and makeshift bunkers were shot apart. The most effective weapon they had was the M270 MLRS vehicle, and while they claimed a few kills against linear tanks, against Mobile Suits they were but chaff to be separated from the wheat.

And they were doing a LOT of separating, if the large number of wrecks, from the M270 to the M60A3 to even the famed M1A2 Abrams, were any indication. The Strike Daggers were joined by their even deadlier brother units, the 105 Daggers, which mounted the Striker Pack weapons system, making them at least ten times worse than the GAT-01s that were slowly wearing the US defenders down. Launcher Pack equipped units destroyed fortified buildings with ease, and Sword Pack units hacked and slashed apart any tank or other armored vehicle that tried to escape. Aile Pack equipped units served as commander-type machines, as they were the most agile in or out of the atmosphere. In short, it would take a miracle to get ANYONE not OMNI Enforcer out of there alive.

But the one thing that the US Armed Forces had to their advantage were the locals, who had formed into guerilla bands and started attacking any AF troops who tried to exploit the gaps made by the railguns and the Launcher Daggers. Not to mention they used the derelict vehicles as camouflage to hide the vehicles they still had in working condition, and used the remains to launch ambushes on any unsuspecting OMNI Enforcer Mobile Suit. This tactic worked so far, but the Commanders knew it was only a matter of time.

At the Save Mart Center, on the grounds of the California State University, the overall Commanders of the forces inside the San Joaquin Pocket were busy conversing over the digital map of their small area. Standing at the front of the table was an elder man with short greying white hair, and blue eyes wearing a MARPAT Uniform, and with the proper insignia which showed him as a Lieutenant General of the Marines.

"I don't need to tell you we're all in a tight spot," Lieutenant General John A. Toolan Jr said. "We're surrounded on all sides against these 'Earth Forces' bastards, and they've been picking down our defenses since day one." He sighed "We only have so many aircraft left, and only a few Abrams, and every other Vehicle we have. And we're down to just short of 2,500 capable men and women from the Forces." He sighed. "They've got us boxed in… and at this point, I'm open to suggestions from anyone here."

There was about a minute of silence, as everyone seemed to look at each other, searching for answers of what to do.

"It seems to me," a new voice said, "that aside from having us surrounded… the big advantage the Atlantic Fed's have against us is their Mobile Suits. We don't have any ourselves… but if we _did,_ we could turn things around here a bit."

The officers blinked and they turned and spotted D.J. and Jordan, the former, having a bandaged left face cheek after getting a couple of cuts from shrapnel, while the latter, while still wearing his trench coat, had exchanged his former clothes with older - but still useful - BDU's, and had a red Bandana over his forehead, right by the door.

"How the heck did you get in here!?" demanded an air force colonel who was dressed in a Digital Tiger stripe ACU. Jordan just smirked.

"The front door was open," he half joked. "And from the sound of it, Lieutenant General, you need all the help you can get… and me and my friend here have an idea to turn the odds in our favor."

One of the Colonels was going to order them to be taken out, but the General rose his hand, silencing him as he looked at the two. "And… you are?" he asked.

"Jordan Tackett, and D.J. Cobb, at your service sir." Jordan said, as both of them gave a quick salute. "Sir, as I said, the AF. have one key advantage: their Mobile Suits. They're tearing apart our own forces because they have the technological advantage. _However,_ if we can get some of their Mobile Suits, we might be able to turn the tide into our favor… at the very minimum, we could hold out until we get some reinforcements from the rest of the Military or _someone_."

The General quirked an eyebrow. "Someone as in…" and D.J. sighed.

"We, along with a good lot of people, know something that involves what the hell is happening," the Military/Anime otaku said. "Though we still don't know _how _this is going on."

"Though right now is not the best time," Jordan said as they walked forward. "Me and D.J., and our own little band of misfits have been doing some scouting in the forests… and we found something." He pointed to a small area on the map. "The Atlantic Federation set up what looks like a Depot here, and from what we could see, it's being used as a recharge and resupply spot for their Mobile Suits. They've got Daggers, Strike Daggers, Buster Daggers, Duel Daggers, and all of the ammo, weapons and supplies needed to keep them running."

Jordan looked up at the US Armed Forces. "Unless we get these Mobile Suits, we're screwed either way," he said. "Even if we can just get a handful of them, we'll have enough to hold the line for a bit longer until we get some help. I for one don't want to sit here on my ass while these bastards overrun our positions and take _our _homes. If we're going to hit them where it hurts, we need Mobile Suits. We've managed to gain a bit of an understanding of how they work from units you've managed to destroy in the past, along through some other sources, and we believe we understand the basics of operating them."

The officers were a little unsure, while Toolan, although skeptical, was not about to lose a gift in the horses mouth.

"If you can do this, you think you can do something against those damn 'Launcher' mobile suits?" he said. "They're dealing hell to our armored units."

The two just smiled.

"Consider them sashimi," D.J. said, as he was fully intending to deal with those At Fed pigs. His Uncle Tom and Aunt Claudia were among the casualties in San Francisco, and he was determined to deal some payback.

Before anyone else could say anything, an Army Lieutenant came into the room, moving as fast as he could while wheeling in a rather large 'portable' radio. "Sorry to interrupt, General, but we're getting a transmission from Nellis Air Force Base!"

Toolan, and the other officers all had surprised looks since Nellis AFB went dark almost two days ago.

"Who are they, and what's their unit?" the Marine demanded.

"They're refugees and remnants of the Colorado National Guard, sir," the Lieutenant said. "And apparently, they've managed to grab one of the enemy machines!"

Everyone in the room blinked, including Jordan and D.J. "Well, shit," Jordan muttered. "Glad we're not the only ones with the same idea."

"Still, how did they manage to do that?" the Air Force Colonel asked.

"They came under attack south of Grand Junction, and apparently one of the Refugees hijacked one of the attacking machines in what their commander is calling one of the most insane stunts he's ever seen in his life," the Lieutenant replied. "And once the refugee hijacked the enemy machine, well… someone managed to get a recording of what he apparently said over the unit's loudspeakers."

The Lieutenant adjusted something on the radio, and it started playing back a recording.

"_The one that civilian hijacked is moving, sir!_"

"_I can't believe he managed to get it going! Here's hoping he actually knows what he's doi-_"

"_**WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK I AM SLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!**_" came another voice, which sounded different enough that they knew it was coming from a loudspeaker, followed shortly by an explosion. "_**I WON'T LET YOU DO AS YOU PLEASE ANYMORE KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIICK!**_"

Everyone in the room blinked, as Jordan and D.J. glanced at each other and chuckled. "Well… at least we know he's an Otaku," he said. "If the sound of explosions is any indicator, he at least knows what he's doing."

D.J. nodded at that. "Yeah... but who is it, I wonder?" he said. "And, which type of Mobile suit he managed to MS-jack."

One of the officers motioned to the Lieutenant to continue after he glanced at the two civilians oddly. "As to the machine he got, it was apparently one of the variable ones with the Sword-type pack," he said. "And the pilot, when asked for his name, well… here's a recording of what he said." The Lieutenant fiddled with the radio some more, then-

"_Just call me Takeshi Yamato,_" came the voice that had belted out the Gurren-Lagann-esque attack names earlier, only much calmer, and tinged with bitterness and sorrow. "_Now that the last of my living family is dead, my birth name holds no meaning to me anymore._"

Both Jordan and D.J blinked before they looked at one another "You don't think…" D.J. whispered.

"The odds are 1,000,000/1," Jordan said. "But all things considered, with Gundam and all that…"

"Maybe…" D.J. said. "But… if what he said was true… about his parents…"

Jordan sighed. "A lot of people have lost their families, Drew." he said, "I'm still worried sick about mine…"

D.J nodded, knowing how true that was. Meanwhile Toolan looked a the Lieutenant. "Contact them, and tell them if they can to hurry their asses over here, with everything they have," he said. "We could use all the help we can get over here, and if they do have one of those Mobile Suits, we can sure as hell use it." The Lieutenant nodded as he saluted before he moved to carry out the orders.

Toolan then turned back to Jordan and D.J. "Well boys," he said, smiling a bit. "Looks like your plan may work if this kid could pull it off… what do you need?"

"Anything you could give us without sacrificing the defenses," Jordan said. "I understand you have a lot of pilots without planes? A Mobile Suit may be different from any aircraft, but some piloting skills is better than nothing. Plus at least they'd be doing something rather than sitting around doing almost nothing else."

The general nodded. "I agree with you. There's Captain Richard Miller and survivors of the Black Knights Squadron who lost their planes when those shitheads came and blew up the hangers." he said, and the two nodded.

"Excellent," Drew nodded, remembering the name of the Marine squadron, and then he smirked. "And I'm sure they're gonna love their new rides."

"I'll send word to Miller and his boys ASAP," the General said. "Along with every other able-bodied pilot I can muster." He then paused for a moment "Also, I'll loan you a Platoon of the best we have: A Platoon from SEAL Team 7 that managed to evacuate with us."

The two were surprised at that, but they were not complaining. With the Navy SEALs helping them out, the mission will probably go a bit smoother. However, they both knew that the E.A.F. will probably have their aces or, worse, Extendeds.

But, if there were, they would cross that bridge when they get there.

"That… will do General." Drew said and he and Jordan gave the Marine general a salute.

"When do you plan on attacking that depot?" Toolan asked.

"ASAP sir," Jordan said. "We can mobilize the moment everyone in the attack force is ready - we don't have a moment to lose, since it's only a matter of time before the EA tries to make their final push to overrun our positions here."

The General grinned a bit at the eagerness of these two. They were only civvies, but they got the heart of soldiers in them.

"Then you best get your people ready," he said. "I'll have S-Team 7 and the Black Knights ready for you when you get back here."

The two nodded as they saluted the General, who returned the salute before they marched out. D.J let out a sigh. "Damn," he said. "I can't believe he actually listened to us."

"He's desperate, D.J.," Jordan said with a sigh. "We're all getting desperate… we saw those pictures we took Drew, there is a _lot _of activity going on across the EA lines, I fear an attack may be iminent. The only way I can see any of us surviving this next assault is with Mobile Suits. This is an awfully big risk we are taking… this had better work."

* * *

**Meanwhile - Nevada**

**Nellis Air Force Base**

* * *

Takeshi sat in the cockpit of his 105 Dagger, which was currently hooked up to a diesel generator with specially adapted cables to allow it to recharge, adapting the OS to suit his personal styles and adapting the Phase Shift Settings.

He'd found the options function for the Transphase Armor rather early on, and was in the process of changing it to more regular Phase Shift - it might drain more power, but Transphase Armor's nature of only activating when hit with a physical blow and only where the blow was striking meant that it could possibly be overwhelmed by massive volleys of fire, a weakness that basic Phase Shift Armor didn't have.

He was also optimizing the OS for high-speed melee combat - part of him was wishing that he had access to Gundam Exia, or even his custom Tempest Gundam right now, but he had to make do with what they had. Thankfully, they'd managed to take down a 105 Dagger with an Aile Striker Pack earlier, with the Striker Pack completely intact, and they'd managed to mount both it and the Sword Striker at the same time, with the Anti-Ship Sword now resting on the back of the Dagger's waist. It didn't give him full flight capabilities, but it did give him increased maneuver options and two additional beam sabers. All he needed was a second Beam Boomerang and he'd have Seven different bladed weapons, just like the Exia or the Tempest.

"Yo! Kid!" A voice called out, causing Takeshi to poke his head out of the cockpit, as the commander of their group approached his machine. "We got contact from the forces at the Sierras!"

"Good to hear," Takeshi replied. "What's their situation?"

"Not good," he said, sighing as he shook his head. "They're surrounded on almost all sides by Atlantic Fed forces, with their backs against the walls. And they think their next and final assault is coming up soon. The General there wants us to help break their encirclement, and rain hell on the AF with your machine and the other forces we have. The General said they had a plan to 'even the odds' but didn't go into much more detail. Didn't want to risk the chance of the AF picking up our transmissions."

Takeshi nodded. It made sense. "Understood," he called out. Ducking back into the cockpit to check his machine's power levels, he continued, "My machine looks like it's fully charged. Just need to do a few final tweaks to the OS, and I'll be ready to go!"

The Commander nodded and gave a thumbs up as he went back to inform the rest of the group, leaving Takeshi to continue the upgrades before he gave a slight sigh.

"Man, what I would give for a Sword Calamity," he said, "The 105 Dagger is great, but I need something with a bit more bite. Exia would be my preferred choice, but have to make do with CE machines, and the Sword Calamity's the most melee-focused CE suit I know. Heck I wouldn't mind stealing one from one of the Aces that use them!"

Somewhere else on earth, a certain EA Pilot sneezed.

* * *

**Meanwhile - Near Lake Athabaska - Manitoba/Saskatchewan border - **

**May 18th, Anno Domini 2014/Cosmic Era 71**

* * *

If there was one thing Ron seemed to do best, it was learn quickly. He mastered the use of his Mobile Suit's controls within a few days, and he received bad news over the OMNI Enforcer frequencies: the Alliance had launched a strike against Edmonton and destroyed most of the survivors. The rest were running toward either Alaska, which was untouched for reasons unknown, and south to Washington State across the border. For Alaska, the Gundam expert (or Crimson Fucker: depended on the people referring to him) figured that this was after that disaster of an attack known as Operation Spitbreak. It explained the Strike Daggers and their 105 counterparts, and why OMNI Enforcer wasn't bothering with Alaska just yet.

As for Washington, it wasn't that big of a surprise. A lot of Canadian Forces that survive the initial battles were either going up north to Alaska, or south the the United States across the border hoping for better luck helping the Yanks. Thankfully, a lot of Canadian Forces have been managing to find some pockets of areas in the north that the AF haven't conquered yet, such as Washington, some of Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Maine, and New Hampshire.

"Well, this fucking sucks." Ron said in the cockpit of his 105 Dagger "There goes plan A, boys."

Dylan's face appeared in a comm panel. "_NOW what do we do?_" He asked.

"The end of the journey's the same, and those idiots in the US still need our help." Ron said, "We just need to get there fast without leaving the civilians or the vehicles behind. Question is-"

A large transport (larger than a C-5B Galaxy or even the famed Antonov An-225) flew over their machines, not even noticing them. And on the underside of the wings was the emblem of OMNI Enforcer, the military arm of the Cosmic Era Earth Alliance.

Ron smirked "Talk about luck." he said, "Looks like OMNI Enforcer read my mind."

"_What's the plan, Ron?_"

Ron chuckled. "How does a repeat of what those fucking bastards who hijacked those 767s 13 years ago sound?" He said.

"_You mean hijack that plane?_" Tanner asked.

"Damn right, Tanner," Ron said. "If I'm right, that plane is meant to resupply the MS teams down here. And that thing is big enough to transport Mobile Suits en masse. A few tanks and transports won't be a problem."

Kristina's voice came in from the last 105 Dagger. "_The problem is, we need to take out those ground troops._" She said, "_How the hell are we going to do that without blowing up the plane, Ron? Seriously, most of your plans involve a large amount of overkill._"

"The 105 Daggers have 40mm cannons mounted in the head," Ron said. "Normally I'd settle with something like smaller 30mm or 20mm cannons, but 40mms are good enough I suppose." He glanced at the Leopards and LAV IIIs below. "Kristina, get those Leopards to make a distraction. The LAVs can help kill the ground pounders with their machine guns while we board the plane and take down the crew."

"_There's a LOT of things that can go wrong, Pinkerton._" Kristina warned.

"Then we make sure they don't," he said before he took in a breath. "PANZER VOR!"

* * *

**Lake Athabaska - OMNI Enforcer staging point**

* * *

The poor bastards would not see it coming. The plane (which, to Ron, looked surprisingly similar to the _Garuda-_class from _Zeta Gundam_) had landed on the lake, and was offloading equipment and weapons as quickly as possible. There were reports of a group of Canadian Armed Forces troops that managed to take out several of their Mobile Suits and cause a lot of problems for them. As such, they wanted to get the equipment offloaded as fast as they could and get the hell out of there.

Too bad the unofficial leader of said group had other plans.

120mm shells landed near the outskirts of the base, getting closer to the human targets and away from the plane. "Get out of there!" The Commander of the OMNI enforcer troops shouted "It's that Canadian motherfucker!"

The transport tried to get moving, but the crew was mostly off the plane to confirm that the supplies had been transferred. Only the pilot and co-pilot were on the plane, and two men weren't anything to a pissed off Canadian. Out of the forested area came a 105 Aile Dagger, and the OMNI Enforcer troops thought that it would save them, but those hopes were dashed as the Dagger landed in the plane's cargo hold. "Tanner, Dylan, cover the LAVs and the Leopards!" Ron ordered. "Kristina, get on the plane!"

Tanner's Launcher Dagger popped out of cover, firing the shoulder mounted Gatling at the Alliance troops.

"Got it!" Dylan said as his Sword Dagger came out of cover next, using the Schwert Gewehr as a giant bat rather than a sword proper. "We'll give 'em hell!"

The last Launcher Dagger managed to land on the plane, and both machines marched as far forward as they could before Ron and Kristina dismounted their machines. Ron carried his Remington 1100 shotgun while Kristina had a Colt C8A1 carbine with a AG-C 40mm grenade launcher. "Cry havoc, ne?" Ron said with a smirk.

"Shut up and move!" Kristina shouted, as the plane pitched forward slightly, but that didn't stop them from reaching the cockpit doors. Kristina forced the doors open before Ron charged in, finding the two pilots yelling at one another. "OH, boys?" He shouted, and both men looked at the shotgun-wielding Ron. "Haven't you heard? This is MY plane now. So, unless you want to die, OUT OF THE SEATS."

Both men weren't expecting that comment. "Alright! We surrender!" The pilot said as he throttled down, stopping the plane.

"Good," Kristina said, "Now, we're going to be letting you off here. Have a nice day." She grabbed the two pilots and began to herd them toward the rear hatch, but Ron shook his head.

"They're pilots." He said, "They could do something to you, then hijack the Daggers. I have a better plan." He opened the side hatch to the cockpit.

"They won't survive the fall." Kristina said.

Ron just smirked "Who says they'll fall?" He said, as Kristina pushed the two OMNI Enforcer pilots to the hatch.

"Wait!" The Co-pilot shouted "You said you wouldn't kill us!"

The 6'4 Canadian scoffed. "I never said that." He said as he took aim with the Remington and fired four shots from the semi-automatic shotgun. The two pilots were dead before they even got halfway to the waterline.

"You didn't need to do that!" Kristina shouted, "Besides, we needed them!"

"I know how to handle a transport in flight." Ron said, "Basically the same as flying a Cessna. Just over a thousand times bigger."

Kristina sighed. "Dylan, Tanner, status?!" She asked on the Radio.

"_Those assholes won't be giving us any trouble, Lieutenant._" Dylan said.

"Finally." Kristina said, "Load the Mobile Suits and the vehicles into the plane. We're getting the fuck out of here."

With that, and after loading the Mobile Suits and other vehicles, the Transport took off leaving a devastated base.

However, watching the transport take off was a single person, clad in an EA pilot suit. Their eyes glaring at the transport as it took off.

"This isn't over." He growled out, "Not by a long shot."

* * *

**Fresno County, California**

**Atlantic Fed Weapons Depot, 20 miles West outside of Fresno.**

* * *

Jordan smirked as he looked through the pair of binoculars he had in his hands, as he and several dozen men and women in varying uniforms were behind him in the foliage of the forest in cover "What did I tell ya, Chief?" He said to a man wearing a Navy SEALS uniform lying down next to him with binoculars of his own, next to him was also D.J. "Mobile Suits galore down there."

He was right, 20 miles ahead of them they could already see the large AF Weapons and MS Depot in the distance, while there were a handful of AF Vehicles such as Tanks and Utility Jeeps patrolling the area, no AF Mobile Suits were active, and they could see lying down on trailers and standing up in make-shift hangars the AF forces had set up were dozens of Mobile Suits of varying types, most of which were GAT-01 Strike Daggers or GAT-01A1 105 Daggers. All of which were simply _waiting _to be taken.

"I gotta admit, Kid," said the Chief Petty Officer. "You two were right on the ball on that intel."

D.J. and Jordan both chuckled at that. "Well, we don't want to make the same mistakes as most of those bureaucratic morons in Washington," the former said, and scanned with his binoculars before his face turned into a frown.

"Jorn, makeshift hangar in the northeast corner." he said, and Jordan followed D.J.'s instructions and his eyes widened.

"Oh shit," he said, as he saw a couple people in familiar EA pilot uniforms. "Those are Armored Normal Suits… same ones the fucking Druggie extendeds use…"

"Who?" The Chief asked, and D.J sighed.

"Remember what we told you about Gundam and all that?" he asked. At the Chief's nod, he continued, "Extendeds are basically MS Pilot super-soldiers The EA and AF call them 'Biological CPU's'." D.J. growled a bit "They're artificially strengthened through genetic and chemical methods, trained up to be killing machines with drugs."

"They're mentally conditioned to eliminate their sense of fear, and increase aggression in combat," Jordan continued. "The first Gen are given regular doses of a performance-enhancing drug called Gamma Glipheptin. Makes them act crazy during battle… but the withdrawal effects are _very _severe, as their own nervous system begins to collapse without regular doses. The only reason they work with the AF and the Alliance is because they are the only ones who can supply Gamma Glipheptin - which keeps them alive and out of pain."

The Chief was a little unnerved at that.

"Jesus… and how long do these drugs last?" he said, and D.J. sighed in thought.

"Approximately, twenty minutes or so…" he said. "Unless they don't have spare capsules of the shit in their Mobile Suits."

That didn't make the Chief feel any better, but it also gave the best marksmen of SEAL Team 7 a top priority objective.

"So far, I only see two, and thank God it's not Clotho, Shani, or Orga, since those three are the most ruthless since they're cons," D.J. said. "And, the Mobile Suits I see in the hangar are just 105 Daggers."

"Yeah, the ones we can see at least," Jordan said. "We can't see what's more towards the back of the base - I can see a few more trailers, but I've got no idea what they're carrying."

"One of them might be a Gundam Type. So, it's best if we secure those first," D.J. said, "After that, we'll try to capture as many of those 105s and Strike Daggers as possible."

They then heard a shuffle as another SEAL, with the rank of Petty Officer First Class, came up to them.

"There's a firebase of AF just a few miles down the road," the POFC said. "I counted at least five mobile suits."

"What types?" Jordan asked. "And were they active, or parked?"

"Only two were active, and they were heading to the depot," the POFC said. "The other three were parked. From the pictures you showed us, the active ones are a Buster Dagger and a GAT-333 Raider Full Spec. They've also got an GAT-01A1, and two GAT-01's."

Jordan thought about it for a moment, as a plan began to formulate in his mind. He then smirked. "We could use this," he said. "While our primary objective is the depot, we could hit the Firebase simultaneously. If we do it quietly, we can capture their MS and use them to help in attacking the Depot… or if we do it loud, we could draw some of the defenses at the Depot towards the Firebase, giving the Depot Attack less resistance to deal with."

They then looked at the Chief.

"Think you can handle the Firebase, Chief?" D.J. asked, and the Chief nodded.

"Hell yeah I can," he said. "I'm gonna need more men though."

"We'll give you half of our guys," Jordan said. "They'll try and capture the three remaining machines there and give you cover."

The Chief nodded. "Got it," he said. "We'll take care of it - and bring your guys back in one piece."

Jordan nodded as he made a series of hand signals to several of the men behind him, who nodded before they stood up and moved away along with half of the SEAL's.

"Alright," Jordan said. "Let's head to the Depot, we've got twenty miles to go, so we'd best start hauling ass."

The group nodded as they got and proceeded toward the depot, all of them determined to complete the mission successfully.

* * *

**Meanwhile, just one mile off the coast of Monterey Bay**

* * *

The Archangel broke the surface of the water as it now ascended into the air just southwest of Monterey. As it rose through the air, the bridge crew of the _Archangel_ could finally see with their own eyes the battlefield playing out before them, with shocked looks around their faces. The west coast of the 'former' United States was an all-out warzone, as the red skies looked as if they were in flames, with pillars of smoke rising from the ground, and tracer bullets firing up into the sky.

"Oh my god…" Sai Argyle muttered, as they saw the battlefield before them. While they had all seen what happened to the African Village that Sahib Ashman and the Desert Dawn lived in, but this made that look like childsplay.

"It looks as if someone opened the gates of hell," said Mu, clearly not liking what he was seeing.

Murrue nodded, but didn't say anything as the coastal city, famous for it's seaquarium, the sea kelp forests, and its white beaches, turn into a virtual hell.

"I hate seeing a city like Monterey turn into this," the Lt Commander said. "So much was probably lost in this chaos…" She turned too Mirallia "Mir, what do you have on the Comm Channels?"

Mir shook her head. "It's all pretty jumbled out there, Ma'am," she said. "Getting a lot of chatter on AF and multiple other unknown frequencies. It's a total mess. However there is a lot of chatter coming around the area near the Sierra Nevada Mountains."

Murrue gave a neutral look. "Can you make out anything there?" she said, and Miriallia was quiet for a moment before she responded.

"Reports of heavy fighting, large numbers of refugees, and the AF having trouble breaking through the lines," she said.

"It looks like the guys who started this mess are in some trouble," Mu commented, turning to the Captain. "I think it's a safe bet that if we want to find out what's going on, that's where we should start looking."

Murrue nodded and turned to Arnold Neumann, the helmsman.

"Neumann, set course for the Sierra Nevadas," she ordered, and Arnold nodded before the _Archangel _began to leave the coast.

In the hangar, Kira Yamato, a young 16 year old, brown haired, 1st Generation Coordinator, and Orb citizen was busy making adjustments to the O.S. of the Freedom, given to him by Lacus.

The Freedom was an amazing machine, and has proved itself to be superior than the Strike in almost every way. He was glad that Lacus had given him such a powerful machine… but his thoughts drifted away from the Freedom itself, and more towards Lacus. He could not deny his growing feeling for Lacus, he developed a small crush on her after initially meeting her in space after finding her life pod among the ruins of Junius Seven, however at the time, he still had feelings for Flay Allster. However after staying with her on the PLANT's… those feelings began to grow further.

Speaking of Flay Allster, that was another subject which he was internally torn. He admits that breaking up with Flay back at Orb was probably for the best, as the love he had for her wasn't the same as with Lacus… but he could not simply forget her, as he still cared about her, and wondered where she was now, weather she was safe or not.

It made him wonder somewhat… if he met with Flay again, would he go back to her? Or would he continue to follow his growing feelings with Lacus?

He scratched his head in mild frustration at the dilemma he was in. Sure, he figured out that Flay was just using him to kill his fellow Coordinators in revenge for her father, which he blamed the war for that.

His thoughts were interrupted as he heard a knocking at the entrance of his Gundam's cockpit, and he looked up and saw one of the 6 Astray pilots that went with them, a young man the same age as him named Daiki Goro, who had black hair, grey eyes, and dressed in a blue Orb flight suit. The pilot reminded him of Tolle in way, he was very friendly, and was moderate about Coordinators, though he had a mischievous side. "So this is where you've been," he said. "You doing okay, Kira?"

Kira nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine," he said. "Just doing some mods to the Freedom's OS. What's up?"

"Just came from the pilot ready room," Daiki said, as he sighed. "We saw some of the video of what's going on in Monterey Bay… damn place looks like the gates of hell now."

Kira nodded at that, having seen the video images of all the cities damaged by this phenomena that had gripped almost the whole planet. At first, when he saw the still images of the uniforms worn by those attacking the Alliance, he was at first, a bit suspicious.

And now that they were here, they had a chance to find out what the hell was going on.

"I know," Kira said as he sighed. "I've never seen something like this before..."

"It's an honest to God warzone out there," Daiki said. "Captain will likely want the pilots all on standby in case AF forces try to attack, or if these unknown turn out to be hostile." He then smiled a bit. "Hopefully, we won't need to make any more enemies though."

Kira nodded in agreement at that.

"I agree with you on that," he said, as he finally stopped what he was doing and began to get out of the cockpit, while Daiki stepped aside, while Kira stretched.

"You know," Daiki said. "They should find a way to make MS cockpits more spacious. No offense to Morgenroete or anything, but sometimes it's a little claustrophobic."

Kira chuckled a bit. "Wow, glad I'm not the only one who noticed," he said. "I've had a few ideas for that… but of course with all that's going on, it's not exactly something I have time to work on. Plus I'm not that good with hardware, I work mostly with software like Operating Systems."

Daiki nodded in understanding. "Well, maybe you can tell Mrs. Simmons when we get back to Morgenroete," he said. "She's always looking for new ideas."

Kira nodded, thinking he might just do that.

"Hey fellas!" said a female voice, and the two turned, and saw one of the Astray Test pilots, Mayura Labatt come toward them, clad in her pink Orb pilot suit. "Thought I'd find you here. The Captain is ordering all pilots to the briefing room. Turns out we're heading for the Sierras."

"The Sierras?" Daiki asked, "Why there?"

"Don't know, Captain said she'll explain in the briefing room," Mayura said. "Come on, don't want to be late."

* * *

**Back with Jordan and D.J.**

**AF Depot perimeter **

* * *

It was now nightfall as the group of Guerillas and SEALs reached just outside the perimeter having crawled since late afternoon. Jordan pulled out his SKS, which over the weeks he has modified to be compatible with AK-47 Magazine clips and attaching a ACOG sight on top. He looked down the sights. "Front entrance is guarded by two guys," he said. "Armed with Rifles. A few guards are also patrolling the perimeter from the looks of things."

"See any openings?" D.J asked, as Jordan surveyed the area.

"Twenty Degrees left, south side," he said. "Part of the fence they set up isn't well guarded. I brought some pliers, we can get in through there."

"Good, although we all know a well thought out plan is bound to backfire," D.J. said.

"Dude, don't talk like that! It's bad luck," Jordan said.

"Sorry. Let's get moving," he said and the two started moving toward the fence that was lightly guarded, their group following closely behind. Upon reaching the area, Jordan pulled out two pairs of pliers, and handed one to D.J as they began cutting through the wires of the fence.

Once the hole was cut out, they yanked out the wires they cut before Jordan walked through first, and began motioning for the others to head on in. "Come on, hustle!" he hissed as he held his SKS at the ready. One by one the SEAL's and Guerrillas entered through the hole with Jordan and Patriot keeping watch.

When the last person slipped through, Jordan and Patriot ran to catch up with them. "We'll need to split up," Jordan said. "You take half of the team to the northern area, and I'll take the rest to the rear of the base. I'll see what other Mobile Suits our AF Friends have."

The SEAL leader, another CPO, nodded as he signaled for his fellow SEALs to follow him, while Jordan, D.J., and the guerillas, about 9 in all headed to the rear of the base, keeping low to avoid being detected. It took them at least ten minutes to cross the entire base, along the way planting some semtex charges at specific locations around the camp.

They now arrived where there were at least 4 trailers, like the ones at Heliopolis. Jorn turned to D.J. and motioned him that he was taking the first trailer, while D.J. nodded that he was taking the second.

Jordan pressed his back against the side of the Trailer next to the door, as he opened it. He peeked inside, and saw no one else within the trailer he stepped in. He aimed his rifle downward, keeping a firm grasp as he moved through the trailer, looking for the MS inside. With D.J., he did the same as he opened the door to the trailer, and searched inside.

It didn't take long, as a few moments later D.J. popped through another door at the center of the trailer, and upon seeing its contents D.J's eyes widened, before he grinned "Oh _yes!_" he hissed out, as he saw a GAT-01A1 "105" Dagger in mint condition, and appearing to be armed with an Aile Striker. "Now that's what I'm talking."

He was about to march toward it and board when something caught his eye, and he walked toward a computer which was displaying a set of Mobile Suit Schematics. His eyes widened as he recognized as the GAT-X105E Strike E, and its special Striker Packs, including the infamous Noir Striker.

"Oh fucking _hell _yes!" he hissed again. "Score!"

He then looked around for a data disk, and immediately spotted one and picked it up.

Meanwhile in the second trailer, Jordan kicked open the door as he scanned the inside of the trailer for hostiles. When he saw none, he looked at the MS inside… and his eyes widened in disbelief. "No _fucking _way…" he muttered, as he began grinning ear to ear.

Inside was a single MS, and it obviously was not of the Dagger series. It had a black and red color scheme, and its head gave it a very intimidating appearance… however the most distinguishing feature of the machine was the golden V head crest presented proudly on its forehead.

It was a Gundam. It looked similar to the Calamity, but very different all the same.

"_FUCKING A!_" Jordan hissed/cheered out as he approached the machine, hopping onto its arm before he approached the cockpit which was already open. He peered inside, making sure no one else was within the cockpit before he hopped inside, closing the hatch behind him.

As he sat in the cockpit of the machine… Jordan didn't know why, but he suddenly felt very calm, and he felt more sure of himself than he's ever been. It almost felt as if he _belonged _in the cockpit of this machine. However he put those thoughts aside, as he began the activation sequence of the Gundam, as the screens flickered on, and the OS warmed up.

**MOBILE SUIT OPERATION SYSTEM**

**/Version NV8 – N099/**

**G**eneral

**U**nilateral

**N**euro – Link

**D**ispersive

**A**utonomic

**M**aneuver

**O.M.N.I. Enforcer**

**GAT-X132 Schwarze Calamity**

'_Schwarze Calamity Gundam?_' Jordan thought, as he smirked as he saw the system features '_Oh my, you have a lot of weapon choices… Calamity Packs? I love it!_' He then quickly disabled the Schwarze Calamity's AF IFF system, and replaced it with the US IFF he designed for them to use. Mostly so they would know in this mess who was friend or foe until they could repaint their machines to their own custom colors.

'_God I hope I can find more of those Calamity Packs here,_' Jordan thought, as he looked at the watch, which clicked to 9:30 PM, and he smirked. '_Show time,_' he thought before he began to raise the Schwarze Calamity out of its trailer.

Outside the MS trailer a patrolling AF soldier looked up and saw the Gundam Type standing up.

"What the _fuck_!?" he shouted.

"Hey!" a voice shouted behind him and he turned around and he paled as he saw one of those Extended Pilots, clad in a black pilot suit, run toward him, while glaring at the rising MS. "Who the _hell _is piloting my Mobile Suit!?"

"I-I don't know!" The AF Soldier replied, as the Extended growled before he grabbed a nearby radio, and tuned it into the Schwarze's Comm. "HEY! YOU! ASSHOLE!" he shouted. "THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?! GET OUT OF MY MOBILE SUIT _NOW _AND I _MIGHT _GO EASY ON YA!"

Inside the Schwarze Calamity, Jordan blinked in surprise at the sudden radio contact, before looking at the direction it came from, spotting the pilot. He then smirked a bit. '_Anavel Gato moment time,_' he said as he keyed the Comm. "I hereby claim this Gundam Mobile Suit in the name of the Black Swords of Freedom," he said. "The United States of America will rise again!"

The two EA personnel both blinked at that. But before they could answer, from the second Mobile suit trailer, the 105 Dagger, began to sit up as well.

In the cockpit, D.J. was grinning like a loon.

"Hell ya, baby!" he said. "Thank you OMNI Enforcer!"

He then held the data disk in his hand, his smile growing bigger. He then looked at Jordan's trailer, and he felt a small twinge of jealously. Setting the Radio channel with Jordan's he spoke into the radio.

"You got a Gundam? A Calamity, no less!?" he said, causing Jordan to chuckle.

"_Correction: Its called the Schwarze Calamity,_" he said. "_And I fucking LOVE IT! It's like the Calamity and Strike put together! And damn that Extended pilot looks pissed I took his machine!_"

"HEY! QUIT IGNORING ME, ASSHOLE!" the said pilot shouted, causing the two to glare at the Extended.

"Ass-can, shut the fucking hell up!" D.J. said, and armed the 40mm CIWS in the head of 105 Dagger.

The AF and Extended eyes widened a bit. "Uhh… see ya!" The AF soldier said as he ran off.

"HEY! Where the hell do you think you're going?" the Extended shouted, before he quickly followed suit. "Someone sound the damn alarm!"

Moments after he said that however, explosions began going off across the base, as out of one of the hangars a GAT-01D1 Duel Dagger, with it's Fortresta Mode armor equipped, sped out of a hangar, along with two GAT-01 Strike Daggers as they opened fire inside the hangar, destroying anything else inside. Across the depot similar actions were taking place as mobile suits activated and began opening fire at dormant Mobile Suits, their IFF's now reading them as United States or Black Swords of Freedom machines. "_This is team two, we've captured a bunch of Mobile Suits,_" came the voice of the Captain Richard Miller of the Black Knights Squadron. "_All captures successful. And Ho-ly shit you guys were right, these Mobile Suits are awesome!_"

Soon the same thing happened and more explosions occurred, and more Strike Daggers, and even two Buster Daggers came out.

"_Fucking A! I love this!" _shouted one of the other Black Knights pilots, in one of the Buster Daggers.

"Okay everyone! Let's blow shit up!" With that D.J. fired the head vulcans of his 105 Dagger, shredding a line of missile trucks and linear artillery trucks.

"_Yeah! Take that you bastards!_" a friendly Strike Dagger pilot shouted, as he gunned down several Linear Tanks. "_Didn't expect this shit, huh? Not so tough now that we've got your toys now, are ya?_"

"Take out the fuel dumps and any aircraft! As well as any parts we can't carry back with us!" D.J. advised, and the others acknowledged as they continued to devastate the base.

In the Schwarze Calamity, Jordan couldn't help but be reminded of Heliopolis from the show. However in this case, they were giving the Atlantic Federation more hell than ZAFT.

"You heard the man, move it!" Jordan shouted as he stepped the Schwarze Calamity out of the Trailer, as he grabbed a "Todesblock" 337mm Plasma-Sabot Bazooka, and a 57mm High Energy Beam Rifle from the trailer as well. "Cause as much damage and grab whatever you can carry! We're hauling ass back to the base ASAP!"

"_Hey Tackett! Do you read me!?_" shouted the voice of the SEAL Team Leader.

"Chief? Is that you?" Jordan said.

"_Yeah, we attacked the Firebase and we captured the 105 and Strike Daggers!_" He then heard the Chief sigh. "_However, that Raider FS and that Buster Dagger are heading your way, right now!" _

Jordan nodded. "Copy that," he said. "You'd best head back to the mountains Chief, we'll meet with you shortly!" He then keyed the Comm to the rest of the team. "Alright, hurry it up people! We've got company incoming! Enemy Raider Full Spec and Buster Dagger are heading our way!"

"_It's just two units, we can take 'em!" _argued one of the Black Swords.

"_Listen! That Raider Full Spec is probably piloted by an ace. I'm not sure about the Buster Dagger, but whoever is piloting that thing is no slouch either!" _D.J. retorted, since they knew who pilots those particular units. _"And we need as many of these things in one piece as possible, so get your butts back to our lines! SCHNELL!"_

"You heard him! Move your asses!" Jordan shouted. "Get back to base, and _try _to avoid combat!" He then hit the private comm with D.J's 105 Dagger. "You think it could be them?" He asked.

He heard his friend sigh. "_It might... But I hope I'm wrong,_" he said. _"I was hoping to face them later than now. But it seems fate has a way to bite you in the ass."_

Jordan chuckled at that, as the rest of the group began leaving the base, using their back thrusters to make long jumps.

"I agree with you on that," he said, and then smirked. "So, what are you gonna do if you end up fighting your crush?"

He heard D.J. stammer at that. "_S-Shut up!_" he shouted, causing Jordan to laugh. "_It's not funny!" _

Jordan would've continued, but right now their sensor warned them of incoming. And the two looked and sure enough, there was a Raider Full Spec in MA Mode, with a Buster Dagger riding it as they headed their way.

"Time to get ready." said Jorn and D.J. in the 105 nodded as they prepared to fight.

In the two incoming suits, Ed Harrelson, the pilot of the Raider Full Spec, spotted the burning supply depot, and the two mobile suits in the base. He quickly identified the first machine as a GAT-01A1 105 Dagger, however the second machine caused him to look at it surprise, as it looked almost identical to his other Machine, the Sword Calamity.

"Rena," he said on the Comm, "we need to be careful, that second machine is a G-Weapon, Calamity-type."

Riding on top of the Raider was a GAT/A-01E2 Buster Dagger with its Gun Launcher and Beam Cannon at the ready. In the cockpit was none other than Rena Imelia, who nodded in agreement. "Agreed," she said. "You worry about the Calamity - you know the machine type more than me. I'll deal with the 105 Dagger."

Ed nodded in agreement as Rena's Buster Dagger jumped off the Raider Full Spec.

"Just don't kill the pilot! The brass needs prisoners to interrogate!" he reminded, and Rena glared back at the Ripper.

"I'm not stupid you know!" she retorted. "Unlike those nut-job Extendeds, I know when to take prisoners!"

Ed could only sigh. "Just reminding you is all." he said, as he flew the Raider Full Spec low "Here's your stop!" Rena nodded as she jumped her Buster Dagger off of the Raider, and landed on the surface as she skidded to a halt, as she raised her two primary weapons and fired at the 105 Dagger.

"SHIT!" D.J. Shouted as he jumped his 105 out of the way of the two blasts from the artillery Mobile Suit. "Whoa fuck, that was a close one. Still got my balls, thank Heaven."

He then returned the favor by firing shots from his M703 beam rifle back at the Buster Dagger, being careful to aim, than to just spray 'n' pray.

"I got him!" Jordan shouted as he raised his Bazooka and prepared to fire a shot, however a stream of 76mm machine gun fire arced past him, causing him to jump back as the Raider Full Spec flew by in MA mode. It turned around for another pass, and Jordan's eyes narrowed. "Oh no you don't, take this!" he shouted, as he fired his Plasma-sabot Bazooka at the Raider, however the pilot was capable of weaving through the shots with ease.

Cursing, Jordan did a quick scan of his weapons again, as he confirmed he was currently fitted with the Cannon Calamity pack, which was basically a pack dedicated to the armaments of the original Calamity, with the exception of the addition of 75mm CIWS and the Anti-Armor Knives.

'_Would've preferred something more Close Combat oriented, but better than nothing!_' he thought as he armed his two "Schlag" 125mm High-energy long-range beam cannons, and opened fire. The Raider continued to weave through the shots, however Jordan then activated the thrusters as he sped forward. Though his current Calamity pack was not suited for actual flight, he knew that the thrusters on the pack were similar to those on the original Calamity, and allowed him to move across the surface faster than standard MS. But if he timed this right…

He watched the Raider as it began to fly in low, trying to give chace using the Raider's superior Speed. '_That's right, keep following…_' Jordan thought. '_I hope Vsauce was right about this…_' The Raider got closer and closer, and when it was a few dozen meters away, he cut the power to his thrusters as he jumped into the air, aiming his Bazooka to the ground, and fired. The Shockwave and force of the blast sending him up into the air as he fired two more times, with the same effects.

"What the?!" Ed shouted as the Calamity seemed to launch into the air, as Jordan pointed his Beam Cannons at the Raider, grinning.

"ROCKET JUMP, BABY!" He shouted, as he fired his cannons again. The first shot missing, but the second shot his very close to the Raider, and he must've done something as the Machine was forced out of MA mode and back into MS mode. "Holy shit, I can't believe that worked!"

Ed was surprised by the sneak attack made by the Schwarze Calamity, and he was wondering if the Gundam Type was piloted by a fellow Ace.

'_Whoever he is, he knows what he's doing,_' he thought, as he grinned a bit, '_Looks like I may have a challenge after all!_'

When the Raider entered into MS Mode, Jordan got a better look at the machine, and he zoomed in on it with his camera, and spotted a small insignia imprinted on its right shoulder… and he groaned. "Oh fuck…" he muttered, as he immediately recognized the image of a rose flanked by a pair of swords. "Ed the Ripper… I fucking knew it…"

He then turned his attention back to D.J. as he watched as the 105 and the Buster Dagger continued their duel, with the latter firing it's guns and almost hitting the Strike Legacy, as he watched the explosions, he noticed how it dispersed like Sakura petals. He groaned again, knowing who it was.

"The fucking Sakura Burst as well," he said. "Just our luck… D.J. it appears that's your dream girl!"

In the 105, D.J. groaned when he heard the warning.

"Just my fucking luck," he said, and then looked at the Ground MS, and an idea clicked in his mind. "I might get killed for this, but oh well."

He then placed the beam rifle behind his back, and then drew a beam saber.

In the Buster Dagger, Rena blinked in confusion. '_Is he challenging me?_' she thought, before she grinned slightly. '_Well, who am I to deny a challenge?_' She put away her Gun Launcher and Beam Cannon, as she pulled out one of her own unit's Beam Sabers.

To the side, Jordan glanced at the sight in confusion. "Patriot, what the hell do you think you're doing?" he asked.

"_Just gonna give a test…_" was his response, while Jordan blinked at that.

"A test…?" He asked.

Ed also spotted the two machines about to enter a duel, and he couldn't help but feel sorry for whoever was in the 105.

"Whoever is in that 105 is either pretty brave or stupid if they think they can take Rena on in a sword duel," the Ripper said. "She might not be an expert like me, but she's no slouch either."

When Jordan saw D.J begin to charge, he cursed. "D.J., you idiot!" he shouted. "This is _Rena Imelia _we're talking about! She fought the same guy I'm fighting to a stand-still! And I'm fighting Ed the Fucking Ripper!"

Moments after he said that D.J.'s Dagger struck out with his beam saber, however Rena ducked under the attack as she delivered a fierce punch into its torso, forcing the Dagger back before she spun around and delivered a kick, sending it back further.

In the cockpit, D.J. shook his head as the whole suit shook from the punch.

"Fuck! So that's how you wanna play, huh?" he said as he threw away the shield, and gripped the handle of the beam saber in both hands, like a Kendo swordsman. "Okay Miss Sakura Burst, bring. It. ON!"

With that, the two went at each other again. In the Schwarze Calamity, Jordan cursed. "Idiot…" He muttered, before warning alarms went off as he saw the Raider Full Spec charge towards him - and much to Jordan's surprise, armed with Beam Sabers. "OH SHIT!" he shouted as he raised his "Kaefer Zwei" 2-Barrel 115mm Ram Cannon shield to block the attack. "Shit! Fuck! He modified his unit with Sabers!"

Jordan shoved the Raider away, before he fired his "Scylla" 580mm Multi-phase energy cannon on his machine's chest, however Ed maneuvered his machine around it quickly. In response, he drew out and fired a pair of GAU-8M2 52mm Machine Guns at Jordan, as he raised his shield again to avoid being hit. His shield took most of the fire, and what shots he could not simply impacted against the Trans Phase armor.

When he stopped firing however, Jordan raised his arm and fired his "Kaefer Zwei" at the Raider, but Ed Maneuvered around it quickly as he jumped up, and the shots simply hit an empty hangar.

'_I can't get a bead on him!_' Jordan though with narrowed eyes as he glanced at his power supply. Thankfully he still had plenty at around 79%, but he knew he had to get out of there - and soon. While his machine was more advanced than the Raider Full Spec - he was facing an Ace, who had also apparently modified his machine to some extent. They still needed to fall back to the mountains with the others.

'_Well, at least it can't get worse,_' He thought to himself, however he immediately regretted saying that as his sensors went off, and he looked to the side and saw what appeared to be a group of six GAT-01 Strike Daggers approaching the area. "Ah shit…" He muttered.

* * *

**Meanwhile - Somewhere in the nearby Forest**

* * *

"_Here they come. Six more Strike Daggers moving in to help them out,_" a voice said. "_You guys ready to help these guys?_"

"_Ready!_" four other voices said.

The shapes of five vehicles shifted as engines started and within minutes, they began to move. Turrets aimed at the incoming Daggers, waiting… hesitating…

"_FIRE!_" a sharp female voice shouted.

Suddenly, the sound of thunder roared out of the forest as fifteen flashes of light soared out of the trees, hitting the ground closest to them and sending brush, rubble, and rocks everywhere.

The blasts startled the pilots and they scattered, trying to find the enemy by firing into the forest in a frenzy. However in a second salvo of shots, one of the closer Strike Daggers was hit directly in the torso and it exploded, catching the attention of Ed and Jordan as they looked in surprise as the remains of the Strike Dagger fell down.

The remaining five Strike Daggers began opening fire at the forest, hoping to take out what had claim the life of their comrade as they unleashed volleys of beams from their 57mm Rifles, as they kept the bombardment up for a good few seconds. They stopped firing after a good 30 seconds of continuous fire, and all was silent…

Just as one pilot was about to ask if they got whoever attacked them, a third salvo of cannon fire blasted out of the ruined trees as one cannon shot blasted a second Strike Dagger, reducing the pilot into nothing but ashes.

His commander witnessed this and his eyes widened. "No!" he shouted. He aimed his rifle, but was caught off guard when he spotted what appeared to be a large vehicle dart past his machine and another slammed into his Strike Dagger's legs, knocking it off balance just as another shot blasted its head, causing it to tip over and fall on its back.

With his machine's head destroyed, therefore also his camera rendering him blind, the commander growled as he unstrapped the straps and popped the hatch, opening it and sticking his head out.

What he saw surprised him in every sense of the word.

Five tanks were running around, and while looking similar to the M1A1 Abrams he has seen the enemies use so far, they looked much different than any other Abrams he has seen before.

For one thing, they had a slightly larger caliber barrel - likely a 130mm meaning it had much more range than the standard 120mm rounds of a standard Abrams with a .50 Cal Machine Gun attached to the cannon's side. But if that wasn't enough firepower, mounted _on top _of the tank was a pair of smaller barrels as well, likely of the smaller yet still effective 90mm calibre. Attached on either side of the tank were two pods of four TOW Anti-Tank Missiles, and attached on top were what appeared to be a pair of 7.62mm M240 Machine Guns. The tanks possessed a far more sleeker design than average M1 Abrams, however if still appeared to pack a lot of armor, and had a pair of dozer blades attached to its front. And they moved damn_ fast _for tanks.

The five tanks split up in all directions, causing even more chaos for the enemy units.

The remaining three Strike Daggers of his team tried to stop the tanks, but they were not as easy to target as the past tanks they've dealt with. They continued to move at max speed, moving quickly around them and circling them, making sure they were not easy targets. Meanwhile two other Tanks peeled off from the rest of them as they gained some distance from the Strike Daggers, and opened fire with their 130mm Cannons, and 90mm Cannons. Their shots destroying yet another two Strike Daggers with well placed shots. The last Strike Dagger tried to fly up to get a height advantage, but the five tanks simply gunned him out of the sky.

With the Strike Daggers defeated, the five tanks entered a V Formation before they charged towards the Depot, One of them barreled right for an ammo storage facility and fired off its guns, all five of them. The shots hit the storage facility and it went up in flames, causing those not in Mobile Suits or tanks to go try and put it out before it hit the other storage facilities for ammo and fuel.

One of the tanks spun around and darted back towards another area of the base, but left the medical area alone. The tank pivoted the turret around and fired at some of the Mobile Suits that were unmanned and blew up two of them while one fell to the ground, burning at the shoulder and chest joints. A third tank let loose with two TOW missiles from the pods and blew up a couple of stationed linear tanks, creating a massive explosion that knocked over a bunch of light APCs.

The fourth one darted by the base commander's office and fired its machine guns, tearing through the windows and sending documents blowing out as fire erupted within his office. The final vehicle rammed down a Mobile Suit that was somehow still operational and buried its main gun in the chest before firing and backing up. The machine exploded as the tank turned and bailed out of there with the others meeting back up with it.

While a few AF personnel armed anti-tank rockets and fired at the group, the tanks moved quickly and dispersed as the missiles missed and struck the ground detonating harmlessly. One tank didn't stop charging at all, as the AF Soldiers panicked, dropping their rockets and jumping out of the way as the tank charged through a building, and smashed through the other side.

What few machines that survived the attack were mobilizing, but they were little more than APCs and a handful of anti-tank guns. The anti-tank guns opened fire, one shot hitting the side armor of one of the tanks, however the smoke cleared and the only damage they seemed to have accomplished was scratching the paint job before the tank turret spun and aimed the AT position, and fired a shot from its 90mm guns. The blast destroyed the AT position effortlessly.

A group of APC's maneuvered into a line, forming a makeshift barricade to try and stop the tank, however they did little as the tank's dozer blades plowed on through them, moving so hard and fast two APC's turned over. A few other APCs aimed their guns and let loose, but two of the tanks broke off and headed at them from either side, charging at them like bulls on the loose. The turbines roared as the tanks split up and slammed into two APCs, crumpling them under the larger weight. The other tanks met back up with the remaining three and they opened up with their machine guns at any personnel who survived.

Ed and Jordan couldn't help but watch in surprise. Five tanks. Just _five tanks_ managed to defeat six Mobile Suits, and decimated multiple AF positions and armor. "Who the fuck is driving those things?" Jordan asked.

Meanwhile, D.J. was not having a good day as Rena was giving him a tough time. He expected someone like Rena to give him hell, but SHIT! This was like a fight between a mongoose and a scorpion, and he was the scorpion about to eaten.

"Fuck me!" he shouted as his Dagger fell backwards to the ground. "No wonder they call her the Natural Coordinator!"

Before Rena could attack with her saber, a large projectile hit the Dagger's left arm, practically making the arm useless. "What the fuck?!" she shouted. "Who the hell shot me?!"

Drew looked to the left, and saw what looked like a massive _Garuda_-type transport flying overhead… with a fucking _TANK_ hanging out of the rear hatch. Whoever was in that tank was either brilliant or insane.

Up above, aforementioned madman, one Ronald Pinkerton, was laughing his ass off while aiming the Leopard's 120mm main gun at the Dagger's head. "That's right, you Blue Cosmos fucktards!" he shouted. "Guess who's fucking you up tonight?!"

The radio crackled as his driver spoke up. "_Ron, are you ALWAYS like this when you're doing crazy shit?_" Dylan shouted.

"Dylan, this is what I was BORN FOR!" Ron shouted. "Tanner, support fire! Let's give these bastards a bigger headache than they bargained for!"

Tanner's Launcher Dagger stepped out, leveling the Agni at the Buster Dagger. "_Got it!_" He shouted as he took aim.

Rena, meanwhile, was in no mood to get killed by a hijacked machine over hijacked machines. "Ed! We're falling back!" she shouted as she hopped away from the 105 Dagger she was fighting. "We're getting outnumbered here!"

Ed meanwhile nodded as he looked at the Schwarze Calamity. "Roger that," he said as his Raider jumped up into the air, and transformed back into MA mode. As he flew towards Rena's Buster Dagger which jumped on, he flew away, but not before he opened a Comm channel with the Schwarze Calamity. "Until next time!" he said with a smirk. "Looking forward to seeing how you improve over time - that is if you survive!"

Jordan blinked a bit in surprise, as he watched the Buster Dagger and Raider Full Spec fly away. However, Jordan couldn't help but smirk a bit. "Right back at ya, Ed the Ripper," he said to himself, before he walked towards where Patriot's 105 Dagger was. "Yo Patriot! You alright?"

"Considering I just got my ass kicked by a girl, I'm just peachy," he said, as he checked the status of his suit. "A few burns to the legs and arms, at least I didn't lose a limb - SHIT!"

A beam shot passed between the two, and they turned and saw, to their surprise, a duo of GAT-01D Long Daggers, both wearing full Fortrestra Modes.

"Oh come ON!" Jordan shouted, as he prepared for combat again, and D.J.'s 105 Dagger stood back up. "We just finished up with two aces! Can't we get a damn break?"

The five tanks that had caused such chaos before came speeding back before stopping in front of the Gundam and Dagger. "_You need a hand?_" a female voice asked.

Jordan blinked in surprise as he looked down at the tanks, before activating his Comm. "Thanks, but no offence but this fight may be out of your league," he said. "Those aren't run in the mill Mass Production Mobile Suits - they're Long Daggers, only Extended Aces and Coordinators pilot those."

"_Still. We'll provide a cover for you as you get out!_" the voice said. "_Now let's go!_"

The tanks began to retreat, firing as they did so. The Long Daggers they were aiming for dodged, but kept their attention directed towards D.J.'s 105 Dagger and Jordan's Calamity.

Suddenly, Jordan didn't know why, he felt some sort of pressure on his mind… he didn't know how else to explain it, but he felt like… something was emanating from the enemy machines. They both felt similar… and they both felt as though they should not be taken lightly.

Jordan put those thoughts aside. "Patriot, we need to get out of here," he said. "We need to fall back to the base. I have a very bad feeling about these guys."

D.J. nodded at that. "I agree with ya, I feel the same way. But these guys are not gonna let us go, since you have their Gundam," he said, as he picked up his shield, and pulled out his beam rifle. "Let's try to take their weapons and then get out of here."

A 120mm shell slammed into the Long Dagger's shield, and both men noticed that the Garuda was flying lower, and the tank (likely either a M60, a M1A2 or even a NATO tank they didn't know about) backed up before driving toward the end of the ramp as the plane managed to fly barely 5 or 6 meters above the ground.

"_PANZER VOR, MOTHERFUCKERS!_" a voice called out, as the tank drove out of the rear of the ship.

Now that it was on the ground, they could ID it. It was a German-designed Leopard, a kind of 'brother' to the Abrams.

"_Hey, MS pilots! Get your asses out of there! We'll try and cover you!"_

The two pilots all blinked at the voice of the tank commander, before D.J. answered.

"Are you guys nuts!" he shouted. "Get out of here, now!"

"_No! We're not!_" the female tanker said. "_We're giving you help! Tanker Knights, mobilize!_"

"_Right!_" the other tanks said.

"Damnit!" Jordan shouted. "Now is _not _the time to argue! We're getting out of here NOW!" He turned to D.J. "Drew, follow me in!" he said as he armed his "Schlag" Beam Cannons once again, and opened fire on the Long Daggers, who quickly dispersed, going in either direction.

"Dammit!" Drew cursed as he prepared his M703's grenade launcher, and fired it at one of the LDs which also dodged it. "Just our fucking luck!"

"_Didn't I say fall back, you jackass?!_" The Leopard fired its' main gun at the Long Daggers, but the MS pilots had long since worn off their shock of seeing an old tank shooting at them, dodged with ease. "_Dylan, turn! Sharp left!_"

"_Got it, but why?!_"

"_We need to regroup with those Abrams! Concentrated fire will kill these motherfuckers no matter what! And what has more firepower than a product of German engineering?_" If Dylan could've, he'd've been glaring at Ron and pointing at the Mobile Suits, but he couldn't see the glare, so he just kept driving. "_Oi, tank lady! Can you hear me?! If you can, aim for the ankles! If they can't walk, they can't fight!_"

"_Roger that!_" the woman said. "_Tanks 1, 2, and 3, you take those guys on the left! Tank 4, you're with me!_"

"_Got it!_" All five tanks split up and went onto the attack. The ones on the left tried to fire, but the tanks lowered their barrels and opened up, hitting the ground and shredding the ankles of the Mobile Suits. While their shots hit, however their shots only damaged the Fortrestra Armor which protected the Ankles.

"Damnit, fall back!" D.J. shouted as he rose his shield, deflecting a Rail Gun shot fired by one of the Long Daggers. "These guys are too good!"

"No shit!" Jordan shouted as he jumped away from the second Long Dagger's beam sabers. "Everyone retreat! We've accomplished our intended mission! Fall back - shit!" Suddenly the Long Dagger kicked his Machine down, as he fell into a hangar. The Dagger fast approached, raising its beam sabers for a final attack. "SHIT!" Jordan shouted, as he began to raise his shield, but he was moving too slow.

However, at that very moment just before the Dagger would of finished him off… a green beam of energy blasted forward, and blasted off the head of the Long Dagger, before another two beams blasted off its arms, causing it to fall back.

Jordan blinked. "T-The fuck?" he asked. "Where did that… come..." However, the answer came as his sensors went off, as he looked up and his eyes widened. "H-Holy… no way…"

**(BGM: "Fly! Freedom!" Gundam SEED OST)**

Up in the sky, soaring above them all, was a single mobile suit, one with a black torso, white limbs and possessed a pair of large wings on its back, and its head possessed an all too familiar double-V head crest. And in one motion, its wings spread out too their full extent, as white particles flowed out of them.

Jordan immediately knew what the machine was. Every true Gundam Fan knew what Gundam this was. One of the greatest machines to be created in the Cosmic Era, ZAFT's first official Gundam. And for the first time, Jordan felt as though he were in awe at the sight of the machine he has loved for so long. Real and in-person.

The ZGMF-X10A Freedom Gundam.

All fighting stopped as all the combatants looked up and saw the Freedom.

Drew was more than shocked when he saw the Freedom, his eyes as wide as saucers as he saw the angelic looking mobile suit.

"Holy shit… am I trippin'…?" he said breathlessly.

After the initial shock wore off, the second Long Dagger tried to attack the Freedom as it launched itself into the air, but the Freedom seemingly _effortlessly _twirled around the Long Dagger, and in a flash it drew outs its Lacerta Beam Sabers as it sliced apart its Rail Gun, and sliced off its left arm faster than they could blink.

From the wrecked Leopard, Ron snorted as he watched the Freedom knock out the Long Daggers. "Fucking coward won't do what he needs to do and just fucking kill them." He didn't care whether or not Kira's past led him to that method of fighting. It was simply easier to kill the pilots and be done with it.

However their thoughts then turned to something else as they spotted a ship that all recognized. The red, white, and blue color scheme, and the front looking like a pair of 'legs'.

"Holy fuck! The _Archangel_!" Drew shouted in surprise, and watched as from the launch catapults, came the GAT-X105 Strike, the Strike Rouge, and to everyone's surprise, Astrays.

Ron cocked his head to the side as Dylan poked his head out of the driver's compartment. "What the hell's going on?!" He asked.

"The _Archangel_ just got here!" Ron said, "And they're launching Mobile Suits!" He then remembered a BIG problem. The _Garuda_-type still had OMNI Enforcer IFF. "Fuck me! If they see that plane, they'll shoot it down!" He dived back into the turret, then flipped the radio to a general frequency. "LCAM-X01A _Archangel_, do NOT fire on that plane!" He warned out "It's full of refugees! I repeat: DO NOT FIRE!"

"_This the LCAM-X01A _Archangel, _who the hell is this?" _said a feminine voice he recognized as Miriallia Haw.

"The fucking Commander of the fucking Leopard tank!" Ron retorted. "Now do what I say and DON'T fire on that transport!"

Jordan, now finally over the shock of seeing the Freedom, finally managed to get the Calamity to stand back up as he watched as the _Archangel _and its mobile suits approached. The two Long Daggers, knowing they were outgunned and outnumbered, decided to cut their losses and retreat.

"_Archangel,_ he's telling the truth," he said as he turned on his Comm. "He and that ship saved our asses before you showed up… speaking of, thanks for the assist."

There was a short pause, before a new female voice spoke on the Comm. "_This is Captain Murrue Ramius,_" came the familiar voice of the aforementioned _Archangel _Captain. "_Glad we could help, we detected your battle and decided to lend you a hand._"

Jordan chuckled a bit. "And its much appreciated," he said. "Though, I'd like to ask why you're here - and what you're doing in California."

"_The short version is that we came here to find out what is happening in the Atlantic Federation,_" Murrue said. "_We assumed that you and your friends are part of the group attacking._"

Jordan paused for a moment, considering how to answer that. "Well… it depends on how you look at things," he said. "From your perspective, we are attacking. But in ours, we're defending our own homeland… believe me, this situation is far more complicated than that." He then sighed. "Look, if you want a better explanation, it's best we bring you back to our base. We can show ya the way… and it'd be nice if you'd let us hitch a ride with ya, since our machines are running a bit low on energy."

"_I'm not a fan of being ignored, Captain!_" Ron said, _"That plane needs to land NOW!_"

"Chill buddy!" Patriot said. "Man, you remind me of a online pal I know."

"_Oh, And who would THAT be?_" Ron snapped.

"That would be Ron Pinkerton," Patriot said. "Goes by the FF name of Ron the True Fan. He's a member of Fanfiction dot net." Ron blinked a bit in confusion. That quickly turned to rage as he roared into the radio. "HOW THE FUCK DO YOU KNOW MY NAME?!"

This caused both Patriot and Jordan to blink, as they looked at each other's MS. "R-Ron?" Jordan asked. "Holy shit, that's you?" He then grinned. "Dude! It's us! Patriot-112 and 117Jorn! "

"_Jorn? Patriot?_" Ron retorted in surprise. "_Holy fuck… I'd debate the odds of us meeting in person like this, but right now I think we all have bigger problems right now!_"

"Your plane should be able to make it back to our base," Jordan said smiling. "I'll send a message to the Commander to expect them. "

"_Hello?! What about us!?_" the woman shouted. "_Titanic X here!_"

"Titanic?!" Jordan shouted in surprise. "No fucking way! You're here too?"

"_Oh yeah! Who else is driving these things!? Me and my friends are in here!_" Jessica 'Titanic X' Miller said. "_Fancy meeting you here too Jorn, Patriot, Ron!_"

"Fuck me," Patriot said, shaking his head while still smiling. "It's like a Reunion of all our Fanfic buddies! Who's next? DKR gonna show up or something?"

Jordan chuckled. "After all this, it wouldn't surprise me if we run into him down the road," he said before he turned serious. "Anyways, right now we got bigger things to worry about, and we'll get back to the reunion latter. Captain Ramius? Do me and my friends here have permission to land on your ship?"

It was a moment before they heard her voice.

"_You have permission to board, Mr…?" _Jorn sighed a bit.

"Jordan Tackett, one of two commanders of the Black Swords of Freedom," he said. "And thank you Captain." He they keyed the Comm for the others. "Alright everyone, mount up! We've got ourselves a ride back to base!"

* * *

**Later - Onboard the Archangel**

* * *

Now with the permission of the Captain, Jordan and D.J.'s machines were allowed to board the _Archangel,_ as they also helped load up the tanks of Jessica's team, and Ron's own Leopard tank, carrying them from the ground into the _Archangel's _hangar bay.

With them all loaded up, Jordan sighed as he finally placed the Schwarze Calamity into its birth in the _Archangel's_ hangar alongside D.J.'s new 105 Dagger. He shut off the Schwarze's systems as he smiled, patting the consoles of the machine "You and me are gonna get along fine, Calamity," he said before he opened the hatch to his machine. He grabbed the decent cable as he lowered himself down to the deck of the hangar bay.

In the 105, D.J. sighed in relief, as he patted his machine as he came out, and mounted his own descent cable. Looking around, he had to admit, the MS hangar looked bigger than in the anime. He then looked down at the floor and saw the tanks that helped them. He couldn't help but thankful to whatever deity saved their asses.

Jessica leapt out of her tank, landing on the ground as she looked around the _Archangel_. Her other teammates all leapt out as well. Jessica was a young woman of 22, with short messy brown hair and brown, almost golden eyes. She wore a _Naruto_ headband around her forehead to keep her bangs out of her face and she was clad in a white T-shirt with a boat picture on the front, blue jeans, and white athletic sneakers. She stood at five foot eight, with tan skin from being outside a lot.

Ron and Dylan popped out of their own tank, the former cracking his neck a bit. "That was too close for comfort…" he muttered to himself as he hopped off of the side of the tank, landing on the deck.

"About time we got someplace safe," one of Jessica's teammates said.

"Tell me about it, Steven," the only other woman on the team remarked. "At least we had these things to use, to devastating effect."

Jordan began to walk away from the Calamity along with D.J., before they glanced up at where the Freedom, Strike, and Strike Rouge had parked themselves, as their respective pilots also descended down to the bottom of the hangar bay. Upon reaching the bottom, they walked forward, removing their helmets as they revealed them to be - as Patriot and Jorn expected - to be none other than Mu La Flagga, Cagalli Yula Attha, and Kira Yamato.

"Whoa, I'd never thought I'd see them in person," Drew whispered to Jorn, who nodded.

"I hear ya," he replied, as the three pilots walked toward them as the Astray pilots disembarked, with the Astray Girl Trio among them. "Let's just try to keep our cool here..."

D.J nodded as the pilots of the _Archangel _approached them, as the three 'star' pilots of the _Archangel _stopped before them. "Well…" Jordan said, "Thanks again for helping us out back there… things were getting a bit hairy." He then looked at Kira with a smile. "And thanks for the hand back there, I'd probably been dead meat if you hadn't of shown up."

Kira shook his head at that as a smile formed on his face.

"It was no problem." he said, and looked at the Schwarze. "But where did you find the Gundam?"

Jordan just gave a smirk. "I'll tell you this: Atlantic Fed security… SUCKS!" he said.

"It only sucked because they weren't expecting someone to be stupid enough to infiltrate their supply depot and hijack their Mobile Suits." All three looked at the source of the comment, finding a rather tall brown-blonde man wearing a ridiculous number of sweaters walking toward them. "There's such a thing as a one-trick pony. That won't work a second time."

Kira blinked. "Uh, who are you?" He asked.

"Ronald Pinkerton, acting commander of the remnants of Canadian Armed Forces 22 Wing/CFB North Bay," Ron said. "And presumably the craziest son of a bitch you've yet to meet."

"If you're anything like you are in Fanfiction, Ron, I wouldn't doubt it," Jordan said with a chuckle. "Good to finally meet ya in person, buddy - and that you managed to survive this whole mess."

"I got lucky: nothing more," Ron said with a small smirk before he turned serious again. "Speaking of lucky, we're going to need to talk." He eyed Kira and company. "Privately."

Jordan nodded, knowing what Ron was likely wanting to talk about. "Of course," he said, before he turned back to Kira, Cagalli and Mu. "Anyways, again, thanks for the help. I… don't think I got your names…?" He knew what their names were of course, but he had to feign ignorance for the moment, knowing he couldn't afford any slip-ups.

"Oh, right!" Kira said, and motioned to himself. "I'm Kira Yamato, this is Lt. Commander La Flaga, and this is Cagalli Yula Athha of the Athha Family of Orb."

"Nice to meet you," Mu said, as he glanced up at the Schwarze Calamity "That's a fancy Mobile Suit you got there… looks similar to the original G-Weapons."

Jordan looked up at it "Its called the Schwarze Calamity on the O.S," he said, as he grinned "Though it also said something about it being a Gundam… I like the sound of that..."

"Gundam?" Cagalli asked, with a raised eyebrow. Jordan was about to answer, but Kira surprisingly beat him to the punch.

"Its on the startup sequence," he said. "It's an Acronym for General, Unilateral, Neuro-link, Dispersive, Automatic, Maneuver, G.U.N.D.A.M."

"Good, I ain't the only one who noticed," Jordan said with a smile, as he look up at the other three Gundams in the hangar. "I'm guessing your machines are also 'Gundams'?"

"Well, the Strike, Strike Rouge, and Freedom are," Kira said. "But the Astrays are all Mass Produced MS from Orb - though they've been designed to bear a lot of similarities."

Jordan nodded as he saw the Astray's in the hangar as well. "So I see," he said in approval. "Look like pretty mean machines if I do say so myself."

"Yup," Mu said as he cranked his neck a bit. "Well, as nice as this is going, it's best we get back to the bridge. I believe the Captain would like to speak with you and your friends here about the situation here."

Jordan nodded. "Of course," he said. "Just give me a moment with them, we just need to get some things squared away here."

Mu and the others nodded as Jordan turned and then motioned for D.J. and Jessica to follow him to another, more secluded, part of the hangar where they could talk.

"So, what's the deal, Jorn?" Jessica asked.

"Alright, listen up," he said in a slightly hushed voice. "No one mention _anything _about Gundam SEED while we're here, that means no telling Kira about the UC Project, no telling Mu about _what _Rau really is, and no telling Cagalli that Kira is her brother. I'd like to avoid the butterfly effect and mess things up more than they already have been at this point. We just need to feign ignorance. Ron already knows this I bet-" "No shit! That's the most basic rule about real life self-insert fics: tell them NOTHING. Same thing applies here." "But I need to make sure _none _of us slip up by accident."

Jessica nodded. "Got it. Me and my team can keep it quiet," she said.

Drew nodded. "Agreed, and I suggest we hide ANYTHING Gundam related, that includes U.C., 00, AGE, Wing, all of it," he said, and the others nodded in agreement.

"I was about to say that," Jordan said while nodding before he sighed. "Well let's get going, shall we?" He looked over at where Ron was. "Ron! You think you and Titanic's team could stay back here and keep an eye on our stuff?" he called out. "I'm taking Titanic and Patriot here to see the Captain!"

"Yeah, sure!" Ron hollered out as he and Dylan began working on some repairs to his Leopard tank. "We'll call ya if we need anything - NO! Damnit! That one goes there, and that one goes there!"

Jordan just chuckled a bit before he walked back towards Mu and the others. "Well, lead the way Mr. La Flaga." He said.

* * *

**A few minutes later**

_**Archangel **_**Bridge**

* * *

The three Gundam fans along with the three pilots, arrived at the bridge of the Earth Alliance's brand new class of warship, the _Archangel_. The two young men's and woman's thoughts were that how more realistic the bridge of the ship seemed in real life.

'_This is freaking awesome!_' Jordan thought as he looked around at the bridge, before his eyes fell upon the very captain of the _Archangel _herself: Murrue Ramius. "Captain Ramius, I presume?" he asked.

Said Captain nodded. "Yes, that's me, I assume you have a reason to what is going on all over the planet?" she asked, and Jordan sighed.

"I'll be honest with ya, Captain," Jordan said. "We're not entirely sure ourselves, but I have a suspicion it had to do with that ball of light in Afghanistan."

"Ball of light?" Ramius asked surprised, as Jordan nodded.

"Yeah, about a week ago the news covered some weird ball of light, that originated in Afghanistan," he said. "It started out small and slow, but in a few hours it passed through the whole planet." He sighed. "Next thing we know… these Atlantic Federation and Earth Forces guys started popping up all across the world. America, Brazil, England, Germany… they've been showing up everywhere, causing all sorts of havoc. Half of the world governments have fallen like Mexico, and only the major powers are putting up some fight. But when they started using these big old robots - Mobile Suits I think they're called, things began going south."

Murrue then felt like she needed to ask the question, and Jorn felt she was going to.

"Exactly, what year is it to you?" she asked, and Jorn pretended to be confused.

"2014 A.D., why?" he said, and everyone one of the bridge crew gaped at that.

"That's not possible." Mu said. "We stopped using the Anno Domini calendar 70 years ago! Now you're telling us we've travelled back in time?"

"I don't think so," said D.J. and everyone turned to him. "If you have travelled back in time, you wouldn't have taken whole armies, and NEW buildings along with you."

Jordan nodded. "Yeah… if it were just a few people arriving here, it would be one thing," he said as he sighed. "This is gonna sound crazy… but I have a theory I've developed over the course since this shitstorm started…" He pointed to Murrue. "You and all of our AF Prisoners say it's Cosmic Era 71, while to us its still 2014 Anno Domini… the only thing I can think of that makes sense is somehow… your world, and ours are somehow… colliding, merging into a single world."

Murrue along with everyone from the Cosmic Era all gaped at that.

"B-But… how is that possible?" she asked no one in particular, while the three A.D. locals all shook their heads.

"We don't know exactly," Drew said. "But… the best place to find the answers, is in Afghanistan."

"It's where the flash of light originated," Jordan said. "For us at least..." he sighed. "Unfortunately, we can't afford to pay a trip over there yet, since we have bigger fish to fry at the moment… The Atlantic Federation is preparing to attack our forces that are held up near the Sierra Mountains, and we can't hold out against them with their Mobile Suits. It's why we orchestrated the raid at the Depot here: to hijack a few AF Machines so we could stand a better chance against them in the coming battle… at least until reinforcements show up."

"And why we snagged those tanks back in Maryland," Jessica added. "We were given a mission by the commander of the First Armored Division, which was supposed to receive those prototypes. We had to keep them out of any enemy hands and go to anyplace where there could be people holding out. In fact, I'm the acting commander of the First Armored… or what remains of it, at the moment."

"There are only a handful of us left," D.J said, shaking his head. "Even with the Mobile Suits we captured… we may not last through the attack without some serious help. We were expecting some reinforcements coming in from Colorado and Nevada, and with Ron's group from Canada should help out a lot. But we can't get much more help from the main forces of the United States, since last we heard they've got their own problems trying to hold the southern states and what other holdouts they still have going for them."

Murrue began thinking about that. They now had a lead of where that light originated, which was Afghanistan, more specifically, the Equilateral Union. Of course, her conscience was telling her to not just abandon these people to wiped out.

Still, she still had a mission which was to find the source of the problem. But before she could say anything further, Romero Pal spoke up.

"Captain, I've just intercepted a heavily encrypted radio message," Romero said. "I'm… trying to see what it said."

"What is it?" Ramius asked. "Is it Atlantic Federation?"

He shook his head. "No ma'am," he said. "I… don't know the coding, but it's not AF."

Jessica perked up, her eyes widening. "Wait. What if it's from US forces?" she asked.

"It's possible," D.J. said as he hummed in thought. "Can you tell us where it's originating from? Could be more US forces trying to fall back and need help."

"Hang on..." Romero said. "I… can't get an accurate position, but it looks like it's coming from…" He blinked. "The… Equilateral Union?"

Murrue and everyone blinked at that, but before the captain could ask, Romero blinked again.

"Wait… there's something very faint coming through." he said and pressed a few buttons and a female voice was heard on the bridge.

"…_is Colonel Patricia Rosen, Authorization Code Sierra Dash Five…_" A female voice said on the comm, her voice broken through static "_…nyone there? NORAD? Pentagon? Dammit, someone and…_"

"Can you clear that up a bit?" Jordan asked, and Romero shrugged.

"Doing the best I can," he said as he continued to work.

"…_entagon, Wolfsbayne is online. If you're picking this up, we need a status report! What's going..._" The voice continued, and D.J. rose an eyebrow

"Wolfsbayne?" he asked. "What's that?"

"Never heard of it before," Jordan said, "But… I have a bad feeling about this..."

"Wait…" said Jessica, "If we're picking this up, could anyone else pick it up?"

Jordan, D.J., and Murrue both blinked at that before their eyes widened in realization.

"SHIT!"

* * *

**Meanwhile, 40,000 feet above Yosemite National Park.**

* * *

Descending through the atmosphere was another Re-entry pod, which broke through the cloud cover before breaking apart. Inside, three Mobile Suits emerged from the pod before dropping through the air together. The machines looked surprisingly like GiNN's, however their head fins were reversed, and each were equipped with Katana Swords and advanced rifles, each colored black with purple trimming.

In the cockpit of the lead machine, was a woman who looked to be in her early twenties with short neck length orange hair, and a black left eye, her right eye being covered by an eye patch, and wearing a customized black and purple colored Normal Suit. "Radio Check, You guys still reading me?" The woman asked on the comm.

"_Tri-Star 2, acknowledges_." said one of the GiNN pilots.

"_Tri-Star 3 here… man, I hate Earth's gravity,_" said the second of the woman's teammates.

"Just deal with it Mars," the woman said. "We're the only pilots the Commander could get to Earth on such short notice."

"_Yeah, look on the bright side,_" Tri-Star 2 said with a chuckle. "_At least we finally got our new custom units for the mission. These GiNN HM 2's are a step up from our old ones. We should be able to take on anything we see down there - including those new Earth Forces machines._"

"_Yeah, yeah, I know,_" said Mars."_But it doesn't change my mind how I feel about this planet's gravity."_

"Cut the chatter, Mars. We'll be approaching our LZ very soon," the woman said again. "Right in the middle of Yosemite National Park."

"_Copy that boss,_" Tri-Star 2, Herbert Von Reinhard, said. "_We'll follow you in._"

The woman, Hilda 'Tri-Star 1' Harken nodded as the three machines of the Tri-Star continued their descent. "Stay tight, you two," she said. "We don't know what to expect down here, unless we confirm any hostiles as EA, fire only when fired upon."

"_Roger!"_

* * *

**Refugee Camp**

**Yosemite National Park.**

* * *

Large numbers of people that were in travel trailers, campers, RVs, and tents, littered the entire area of the Yosemite National Park, which was then renamed as Yosemite City, due to the large number of refugees, which the population was at least near nine thousand people. Yosemite was one of two major refugee areas in California, the second in Owen's Valley.

The people living in the makeshift city were people from across California, including citizens from Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, and other cities of the western US nearby. While life wasn't perfect for the people, who wished for life to return the way it was just a few weeks prior, they managed to get on by, as they managed to go about their new daily lives, helping one another - and their defenders - as much as they can.

Among the people of Yosemite City, sitting by an old trailer were two men wearing classic hunting gear and armed with hunting rifles. "It's crazy, ya know?" the first man said. "This place used to be a park… people enjoyed themselves here… now? Look at it…"

"Yeah…" the second man said, sighing. "I wonder if things will ever go back to normal… where everyone can just go home…"

"But, with the recent shit happening right now, nobody knows when it will be…" the first man said, and before the second could say anything, people began to shout and point up at the sky, causing the two to look up and their eyes widened.

"Oh shit! Not again!" The second man shouted as he saw three large machines falling from the sky. Luckily for them, these weren't the hostile (well, they WERE hostile, just not to the refugees) humanoid Daggers dropping in from space, as they looked slightly larger, and with a much more different design.

The MS team landed harshly, but that was mostly because their machines weighed somewhere around 80 to 100 tons. Nothing that heavy lands like a feather. But not one of the refugees gave even a fraction of a fuck to any of that. They were Mobile Suits, likely there just to make their lives worse. So the general reaction of total anarchy was perfectly natural.

"_Whoops,_" Said Mars as he and the others saw they landed in the middle, of what they can see, is a refugee camp, and spooked the locals. "_Looks like we landed right in the middle of a bunch of scared rabbits." _

"_And what the hell is _**that**_ supposed to mean, Mars?" _Harkin demanded.

"_I think what he means is we just landed in the middle of a Refugee Camp,_" Herbert said with a groan. "_Damnit, I knew we should've double-checked our LZ…_"

"Cut the chatter." Harkin said, "We're here now, so there's nothing we can do about it. Just make sure we AVOID the civies: I'd like to avoid killing anyone not with the Alliance." The GINNs began moving away from the refugee camps, but not without a lot of angry yelling directed at them.

They were NOT happy, and their fear had now turned to anger. Story of their lives, unfortunately. Fortunately, none of them had any firearms, so shooting at them (which would just piss off the pilots) was out of the question.

"_Man what's their problem? We're not attacking them or anything,_"Herbert said, as the two GiNNs continued to walk through the refugee camp, being careful not to step on anyone or anything.

Of course, they did step on a trailer or two. That didn't win them any friends, that was for sure.

"Fuck off, you bastards!"

"Yeah, you assholes! You already stole our homes!"

That was when the ZAFT pilots realized that these people didn't have any idea what was going on. They just assumed that they were OMNI Enforcer, as ZAFT didn't have any forces in North America until now. "They think we're with the Earth forces?" Herbert asked. "My God, they've got no idea what the fuck is going on."

"Just keep moving and don't step on anything else, especially something that could be easily squashed like a bug." Hilda warned as the three GiNN HM Type II's continued their walk, until their sensors detected some new friends.

"_Uhh, Hilda, we got company,_"Mars said. "_Twenty targets heading our way!_"

"What are they?" Hilda demanded quickly. "EA?"

"_No, they're… old 21st Century Vehicles,_" Mars said oddly. "_I'm picking up what looks like six M60A3 Patton Tanks, and about fourteen AH-64 Apaches making their way towards us - fast. I think we might of stirred up a Hornet's nest here._"

Even the most advanced AH-64 was decades out of date and posed almost no threat to the GINNs, but those AGM-114 Hellfire missiles could easily be used to take out the GINNs with a bit of skill and a LOT of luck. After all, some jackass in Canada did the same thing with even older weapons. "Don't make any threatening moves!" Hilda said. "Switch to their radio frequency: we need to tell them that we're no threat to either them or the refugees!"

"_What?!_" Mars shouted "_Are you kidding me? Those things are outgunned!_"

"Outgunned or not, they outnumber us, and numbers usually make the difference in a battle!" Hilda said. "And those helicopters can fly better than we can, giving them a bigger advantage. And on top of that, we want to _avoid _a fight with these guys. We want answers, not battles."

Mars grumbled but complied as did Herbert before Hilda keyed the Radio, scanning through the frequencies looking for the one that the approaching forces were using. "This is Hilda Harken of the ZAFT Special Mobile Suit Team Tri-Star," she said, "To the approaching tanks and Helicopters, we are not here to fight - we are not part of the Atlantic Federation or Earth Alliance. Please respond."

It was a few moments before the Tri-Stars got a reply.

"_This is Captain Marlowe of Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion-5th Marines!" _came the voice of the commander of the US Forces. "_What in the flying FUCK is ZAFT!?"_

Hilda blinked in surprise. These people didn't even know what ZAFT was? '_How is that possible?_' she thought, before she sighed. "It's a long story," she said. "But I can tell you we do _not _work for the Earth Alliance or Atlantic Federation, and we're here to find out what the heck is going on here."

"_You tell me, lady!_"shouted Marlowe. "_I was awaiting my discharge from the Marines, and then some fucking wall of light comes out of Afghanistan and covers the _**whole fucking globe**_ and then the U.S. is under attack by these assholes!_"

Again, Hilda was confused. These people thought _they _were being attacked, and not the ones attacking? How could that be possible? However her attention was then grabbed when he mentioned a wall of light. "You saw the flash of light too?" she asked.

"_Did I stutter!?_" Marlowe said. _"And I said it came out of Afghanistan and swept the whole damn planet and these AF pricks just started shooting us!" _

Hilda then mentally wrote the name in her head.

'_Afghanistan, a Middle Eastern country before the Reconstruction War._' the ZAFT pilot thought. '_And if my geography is right, that's smack dab in the Equilateral Union._'

Marlowe was silent for a few moments before he spoke. "_Either way lady, I've got orders from the General,_" he said. "_We're to escort you back to Command HQ, the General would like to see you._"

Hilda weighed the options before giving a sigh.

"Lead the way then, Captain," she said, and the tanks, and the Apache Ds then turned around and began to lead the ZAFT machines back to their base.

* * *

**Meanwhile **

**Wakhan Corridor, Afghanistan**

* * *

Patricia was cursing up a storm, the reason because she couldn't get a hold of Washington or NORAD. Not only that, but she could not contact _anyone _back from the States. Phones, radio, nothing was working as if there was no one listening in.

Ever since Wolfsbayne went haywire, she ordered the whole thing to be shut down, which Anton quickly accepted as the generator itself was shut down, and the base was put on high alert. And then when they lost contact with the states, things got even worse as they suddenly began to feel very alone in all of this.

Patricia was running out of options, and she knew it.

"Dammit… there has got to be a way to get in contact with someone back home," she said, as she rubbed the temples of her head, feeling a headache. Her thoughts were interrupted as one of the base guards came in.

"Colonel…" the soldier said breathlessly.

"Anything?" she asked and the soldier shook his head.

"No Ma'am, we can't get in contact with anyone back home," the soldier said negatively. "The only U.S. base we managed to get in contact with was Bagram Air Base, and even that's a little choppy. We also managed to, although accidentally, contact a Chinese PLAAF Air Base in Tibet, though we couldn't understand what they were saying."

Patricia let out another long tired sigh as she palmed her face with both hands, as she pushed her hair back. The situation was just getting worse and worse. They were in the dark, had no idea what was going on in the rest of the world… she needed answers, and she wasn't going to find them sitting around here waiting.

"Inform the hangar to get an Osprey ready," the Air Force Colonel said. "I'm heading to Bagram. And inform Major Speers that he is in command until I get back."

The soldier nodded and went to carry out his orders, leaving Patricia to once again sigh at the situation.

A few minutes later, Anton walked through the door. He walked in and silently sat next to Patricia, as the two just sat in silence for a few moments.

"Anton…" Patricia spoke first, "That light… what did it mean? What happened… when the field spread out like it did?"

The Russian scientist was silent for a minute, before he sighed "I don't know for sure," he said, "We never ran the machine at full power before… hell, I still don't know what exactly happened back then…" He shook his head. "The best I could give you is an accurate guess… maybe our world and another merged together, or it somehow transported our solar system to the opposite side of the galaxy - if not the other side of the _universe_…_ we just won_'t find out unless… we look."

"That's just fucking wonderful," Patricia snorted. "We have no contact with Command, Project Wolfsbayne seems to have backfired SPECTACULARLY and something tells me that if the general public finds out about this, my ass will be set on fire!"

"It wasn't your fault," Anton said, shaking his head. "I was the one who built the machine… I pressed the button… if anyone will take the blame, it's going to be me."

Patricia gave the Russian a deadpanned look.

"I thought scientists didn't like their reputations sullied and put the blame on others," she said, while Anton chuckled grimly.

"Those are individuals you see in movies and those Japanese Anime shows," he said. "I'm not one of them."

Patricia couldn't help but smile. "Well, that's cheerful news," she said sarcastically.

* * *

**Meanwhile - United States**

_**Archangel **_**- en-route to Sierra Mountains**

* * *

Jordan sat in the cockpit of the Schwarze Calamity, as he overlooked the Operating System of the machine as he inspected all that his newly acquired Gundam could do. He found that learning Operating System mechanics for Mobile Suits wasn't nearly as difficult as he believed it would be, as he was able to quickly learn what did what and how it did it. He thanked his previous understanding of the Gundam universe - and his own experience with computers, hardware and software for that.

It had been half an hour since they made first contact with the _Archangel,_ and since the raid on the depot ended. With the help of the massive battleship, they managed to load up a lot of supplies that they would've had to otherwise leave behind and destroy, including tons of ammo and supplies for Mobile Suits and their maintenance. And not only that but they also managed to acquire the full set of Calamity Packs for the Schwarze Calamity to utilize.

While Jordan and D.J. continued to work on their newly acquired machines, they had begun to get to know the crew of the _Archangel_ more. It was a very strange experience, talking to once fictional characters in person. However, they were steadily building up a decent friendship with Kira and the other pilots of the _Archangel,_ along with the members of the bridge crew.

The tank-driving nutcases (Ron and Titanic) were busy trying to repair the damaged Leopard 2 that Ron used as his C&C vehicle on the deck below. Ron was more or less distant, even with them. And his eyes were red. That was a bad sign.

Jessica's eyes were narrowed as she adjusted one of the bolts for the track. "All right. Just about done," she said. She turned to face one of her team, a young man standing at five foot eleven with short messy black hair and brown eyes. He wore a T-shirt that was blue at the top and white at the bottom with green stripes on the sleeves and brown cargo shorts with combat boots. "Hey, Steven! Can ya toss me that?" she called.

Steven Krane nodded. "Sure thing!" he shouted back. He tossed the tool she needed over to her and she caught it.

"So, Ron, what made you decide to snag a Leopard tank?" she asked as they worked.

"I..." Ron said as he tightened a bolt on the engine block. "Didn't! This thing literally drove up to my convoy! The crews of the tanks were shellshocked. They just stared dead ahead. As such, I hijacked one as my command vehicle."

"Oh. So that explains it," Jessica said as she wiped at her forehead with her free hand. "Bet you're glad for that, right?"

Ron didn't respond at first as he continued to fix the engine.

"More like didn't have a choice. The best weapon to use against a Mobile Suit is another MS. Tanks are second rate unless you ambush the MS."

"Like me with the Abrams," Jessica said. "That's why we have those five." She gestured to her team working on resupplying the five tanks. "And because we were given them by the commander of First Armored before he died… We're just lucky that we were able to ambush them in the first place. They were not expecting us to attack from the forest. Still…"

She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. "I… I never thought that the best armored division we had… would be wiped out so easily! And now… me and my team are the new First Armored. At least until we can get more support and members," she said.

"People die in war," Ron said with a sigh. "They've got better weapons and lots of them. To be frank, our chances at actually winning this debacle are slim, if not none. At least with now we've got a chance to fight back and survive another day."

Jessica blinked. "You mean the MSs that Patriot and Jorn stole from that depot?" she asked and Ron nodded.

"Yeah. Don't get the idea that we'll actually win back North America on our own, though. We're up against a superior enemy force." he said as Jessica bowed her head at that.

"I know. Still, at least we have some chance at surviving. And soon, we can and will reclaim it. But for now… it's either flee or die," she said, looking back at her team. "I know that all too well."

While the two were talking, D.J. in the 105 Dagger was looking through the Strike E schematics on the Mobile Suit's built-in computer. He was looking specifically at the Noir Striker.

He believed that once fully tested, the Noir Striker could be Mass-produced and equip any M.S. with Striker Pack hardpoints. Of course he knew that such a goal was a long-term one until they could amount the proper resources to _make _the Noir Striker to begin with.

"So, whatcha got there?" Jordan said as he appeared in front of the 105's hatch suddenly, causing D.J. to Jump.

"Jeez, Jordan!" D.J. shouted. "Don't sneak up on me like that."

"Sorry," He said with a smirk as he looked at the schematics. "Hey… is that what I think it is?"

D.J. nodded as he looked back at the screen. "Yep, it's the Strike E Gundam, along with its signature Striker Pack, the Noir." he said, and Jordan's eyes widened.

"Where did you get these?" he asked incredulously.

"Back at the depot, in the trailer where I got my 105. They were on a terminal, so, I grabbed the closest data disk I saw, and downloaded the file," he said. "And now I have a theory of actually Mass Producing the Noir Striker once we have the right facility and resources to build and test it."

"Damn…" Jordan said, nodding. "Almost makes me jealous, Patriot… _almost._"

D.J sighed. "You love your new Machine, don't you?" He asked, and Jordan chuckled as he grinned.

"You know it," he said. "The Calamity series is among my top favorites, alongside the Astray Red Frame, Freedom, Blitz and the Gold Frame. I got so damn lucky to get not only one of my favorites - but an _improved _version of one of my favorites! And that's not even mentioning all the upgrades I've got planned for her!"

D.J. blinked at that. "Her?" he said, and turned on one of the sub cams of his mobile suit, and looked at the Calamity-type. "It looks like a guy to me."

That earned him a whack to the head.

"Hey! What was that for!?" he shouted, and saw the glare that Jordan was giving him.

"It's. A. She," he said slowly. "And you best respect that, I won't have you insulting _my _Gundam. And if my plans work - she's gonna have some sisters soon." He began to chuckle maniacally after that.

D.J., as well as a few other people outside the 105 Dagger's cockpit, became unnerved at that laugh.

"Why do I get the feeling that you're going to cause mayhem like a certain drunk Canadian friend of ours does?" he said, and Jorn just continued chuckling.

* * *

**Meanwhile - Northern Canada**

**15 Miles away from Alaska**

* * *

The northern tundra of the Canadian Arctic was a hard and barren place, you had to be hardy to survive the land and it's perils, and to thrive there would require iron hard grit. To do battle there, it required both, with intelligence mixed in.

So, when the 'Atlantic Federation' invaded Canada, instead of trying to continue to hold the lines, the Canadian Armed Forces fell back, retreating further North where, even with the massive mobile suits, they held the distinct advantage of being adjusted to the freezing temperatures, long nights and days, and more importantly, knew where the stockpiled weapons were.

A young man looking to be in his early to mid twenties let out a sigh he was clad in the winter digital camo uniform that blended in with the snowy surroundings, the insignia of a Captain on his shoulders, watching his frozen breath dissipate before him as he looked over the landscape, all around him soldiers were picking through the remains of several mobile suits that were sent to try and root out the Canadian Armed Forces. Above, several CH-47 Chinook Helicopters milled around, grenade launchers attached to the hulls by the doors for gunners to use. "Captain Johnston, there's a survivor."

The man looked over, his brown eyes looked steely, but tired. "Right then," he said as he turned. "Condition?"

"Wounded, but stable, not in danger of dying anytime soon." The soldier replied.

"RIght then," the captain walked up to the wounded MS pilot, studying him as the pilot glared defiantly back. "Right now, your life is in our hands, you have one of two options, submit yourself to our custody and answer any questions we have for you, or die. Choose."

The pilot spat at the captain, nailing the canadian flag emblazoned on his chest.

"There's your answer boys, shoot his legs and let's go," he ordered waving an arm to the circling Chinooks, three of them coming down for a landing. "Load up gentleman! We're moving on!"

Two cracks of a gun followed his statement. "Enjoy freezing to death!" He called out to the now crippled pilot. "That is… if the polar bears or wolves don't find you first!"

The pilot's curses were drowned out by the engine of the Chinook as he climbed on. "Captain! HQ is on the line!" the co-pilot shouted out.

"Roger that!" the captain replied accepting the headset. "Captain Johnston here."

"_Captain, this is General Landry, the _HMCS Victoria _that was tasked with scouting the Alaskan coastline found something, about 30 klicks from your position,_" the General informed as the last of the soldiers were loaded and the Chinooks on the ground rejoined the others. "_I want your taskforce to take a closer look, Spysats aren't picking up any enemy movement in the area, but be careful._"

"Roger that General, we'll get you that intel," he informed closing the link before switching to the squad comms. "Alright boys, new orders, good ol' _Victoria _came through again, she's found something on the beaches of Alaska, we're going in to take a look, eyes sharp boys, we may not see anything, but it doesn't mean that no one is there!"

A course of affirmatives reached his ears as the Chinooks took off towards the submarine's discovery.

As they travelled the Captain stared out the window, watching the barren landscape soar past. '_How long has it been since I've seen an actual summer?_' he wondered to himself. '_And how long has it been since anyone called me Tom or Thomas instead of Sir or Captain?_'

"Sir! We're in visual range!" The pilot shouted out, catching Tom's attention as he looked out the window and dropped his Jaw.

"That's a _Spengler-_Class!" He shouted out. "Pilot, take us down! ALL squads, we are securing that vessel, radio, get Admiral Hummel to get the Super-Ice Breaker out here! We're going to need it if we want unbeach _that _monster!"

The soldiers in his Chinook all grinned at the Captain, for on his own face spoke only one thing, _hope._ "Yes sir!" They all shouted at once.

"_Copy that sir!_" The Chinook pilot replied cheerfully as the Choppers began their descent, heading down towards the beached AF Carrier.

* * *

**Later - Beached **_**Spenger-**_**class**

**Interior**

* * *

A few minutes had passed since the discovery of the beached _Spenger-_class aircraft/M.S. carrier was made, and now the soldiers of the Canadian Army were securing the massive vessel, making sure that the ship really was abandoned and not booby trapped in any way. So far, no traps had been discovered, but Tom was wanting to be extra careful.

He held a Canadian Forces Marksman Rifle System (CF MRS) in his hands as the two soldiers before him cleared the passageway. "This is Whiskey-Actual to all units, report in." He ordered into his comm set to the rest of the units scouring the ship.

"_Whiskey-Actual, this is Ghost-Actual, we have secured the bridge, waiting for Bravo to restart this ship's engines for power._"

"_Bravo-Actual here, we have made it to the engine room, searching for the start up consoles._"

"_Raven-Actual, Dormitories are clear, looks like no one has been here for a while._"

"_Wolf-Actual, same here in the mess._"

"Roger that all units," Tom replied as he mentally filed the reports, his squad coming to a halt in front of the doors leading to the hangers, a quick look to the point man informed him that they wouldn't be able to safely open the doors without power. "Waiting on power to secure the hanger."

"_Roger Whiskey-Actual, we have found the startup, activating in three… two… one… NOW!_"

The entire ship shuddered for a moment before the lights flickered on, power humming through the circuits. "Good work Bravo, Ghost I want those logs pulled."

"_Sir._"

Tom nodded to the point man who hit the release for the door, causing it to hiss open revealing the hanger. Whiskey squad quickly entered, their weapons sweeping the hanger for enemies when they all froze. "Well I'll be damned," Tom breathed as he looked up at the rows of mobile suits in the Hanger, all save one being of ZAFT design, the lone non-ZAFT Suit looked to be a mix of the Duel and the Strike, the gundam V-crest proudly on display. "Boys, I think we have found our level playing field…"

"_Captain, this is Ghost Actual: we've spotted two ships on approach. They appear to be destroyers and cruisers: don't look to be any of ours, and they sure as hell don't look like American or Russian ships._" That left only one option: OMNI Enforcer _Arkansas _or _Des Moines_-Class cruisers.

"Any Mobile Suits on their decks, Ghost Actual?"

"_Unsure at this - FUCK! They've got two of those things per ship!_" Yup, it was OMNI Enforcer.

"Well, I would've loved to tune this thing, but doesn't look like I've got much of a choice now." Fight to strike back, indeed.

* * *

_**Arkansas**_**-Class cruiser EAS **_**Robert E. Lee**_** - **

**20 kilometers from beached **_**Spengler**_**-Class carrier**

* * *

While the _Arkansas_-Class was out of date in the era of the Mobile Suit, against US and Canadian Navy destroyers, frigates and even carriers it was overkill. They managed to sink the USS _Cape St. George, Decatur_ and even what was considered the 'flagship' of the Canadian Pacific Fleet, the HMCS _Ottawa_. They were on the run, and OMNI Enforcer, for once, was doing what they should've been doing day one: killing anything that got in their way. Sure, killing eight decade old ships was easy, but at least they were actually DOING something for once.

They had been searching for more of the Canadian guerilla forces that had managed to take out an entire squad of Mobile Suits, despite the fact that they didn't even have any Mobile Suits of their own. The guerillas had been using the terrain to their advantage and trapping the North with a staggering amounts of explosives.

It was during this search that they picked up several of the Canadian Helicopters circling a beached _Spengler_-class carrier, a rather surprising find for them as well, and decided to 're appropriate' it from the Canadians.

Their Mobile Suits were just about to launch, when one of the hanger doors on the carrier opened up and out stepped a mobile suit, it was mostly grey with ocean blue highlights, equipped with heavy plated armor and a railgun on it's right shoulder and a long rifle in it's hand.

That's when things went to hell.

The first shot was from the rail gun on the unit's shoulder, punching through the cockpit of a '105', no doubt killing the pilot as the unit exploded, very nearly taking the ship and second mobile suit with it.

The second shot came from the rifle, piercing through the cockpit of the second unit, a quick shot from the rail gun tore the cruiser's bridge apart, leaving the ship to float dead in the water.

The final two units managed to take to the air, charging at the unknown gundam in a desperate attempt to end the threat, their charge was met halfway as the gundam pulled out two beam sabers and leapt at the 105's, quickly bisecting the pair of them before landing on the destroyer, it's glowing eyes boring into the bridge as the Destroyer's Anti-Air weapons ping'd harmlessly off of it's armor.

"_One choice,_" A voice announced over the speakers. "_Surrender to Canadian Custody, or die._"

All firing ceased on the Destroyer as the proverbial white flag was raised.

"_Smart, not so fun now that we can fight back, is it?_" The pilot asked, a grin visible in his voice as several Chinooks came towards the ships, loaded with soldiers, ready to secure their new prisoners of war.

Inside the cockpit of his new Gundam, Tom grinned. "Y'know, I just thought of a name for you… _Arctic Wrath,_" he informed the unit, before activating the comm suite and keying it to the Canadian Underground network. "General Landry, I have some good news for you, we are back in this fight."

"_Good work, Captain. Any news on that refugee convoy that was supposed to link up with the survivors from Edmonton?_"

Tom shook his head. "Nothing yet."

Whoever was in command of that convoy were members of 22 Wing/CFB North Bay, and other than Tom's team, were the biggest damage-dealers in terms of knocked out Mobile Suits. And that was while guarding a civilian refugee column, no less.

'_Still, the way those guys took out those Daggers reminds me of something..._' He shook his head. "Whoever those guys are, they know what they're doing. They'll either link up with us or head down to join up with the US forces that managed to escape."

"_I understand, I'll have our scouts report back if they find anything, also, Admiral Hummel has sent out _Pathmaker _to your position, is it really one of their carriers?_"

"Yup, with some nice shiney new mobile suits to play around with, not to mention… a Gundam." Tom informed, a grin spreading on his face. "I'll report in when we get back to base with our new toys."

"_Understood, I'll be awaiting your report then._"

Tom chuckled as he cut off the comms. "Well _Arctic Wrath, _we got some fun times ahead of us..." he informed his unit. "Wonder how _those _guys are doing?"

* * *

**Ron the True Fan: (VII from **_**Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team**_** OST plays) And now the death-fest begins.**

**Patriot-112: Indeed, and introducing...**

**DragonKnightRyu: (Crashes in through the ceiling, landing in the rubble in a reclined fashion) Sup fellow Warhawks!**

**117Jorn: He-hey! Ryu! Glad you could join us for the ride!**

**DragonKnightRyu: (Holds up a bottle of whiskey, pops the top and starts chugging) Rye Whiskey, Rye Whiskey I cry. If I don't get my Whiskey I think I may die.**

**Ron the True Fan: (blinks) I think I should be thankful for my low alcohol tolerance. Either way, people, be ready! The death-fest steamroller is about to get rolling!**

**117Jorn: That be an understatement, if our plans actually work the way we want them to.**

**Takeshi Yamato: Especially if we go with that one idea I had. (Rubs hands together). That would be really fun.**

**Patriot-112: They will work. See you next time folks! (Jumps into Aile Dagger, and takes off) **

**Titanic X: Hey, peeps! I'm also lending a hand! So don't be shy to leave a review, and keep an eye on this epic fic! (Hops into M1A3 Abrams) So see ya next time! (Drives off through the wall)**

**All: Ja ne!**


	3. Chapter 2

**Titanic X: (Swings Abrams tank through door into view) Hello peeps~! Ready for another chapter?**

**Patriot-112: ...Nice entrance**

**117Jorn: (GOUF Ignited crashes through roof) Let's do this! :D**

* * *

_Chapter 3: Dancing with Angels _

* * *

**May 18th 2014 AD/CE 71**

**San Joaquin Pocket - Fresno & Madera Counties**

**California, United States**

* * *

Lieutenant General John A. Toolan knew that today was possibly going to be a very strange day - but he did not believe it could be as strange as it had turned out so far.

First, there were the two kids and their guerilla group - who he had learned since were called the 'Black Swords of Freedom' - who presented their insane idea about hijacking Atlantic Federation mobile suits. Although the plan seemed insane, he knew he was running out of options, so he gave the go ahead.

However, amazingly not only did they pull through - but they got a _shitton _of Mobile Suits. From the raid, the men and women who they had sent with them had brought back a grand total of around thirty GAT-01 Strike Daggers, roughly twenty or so GAT-01A1 "105" Daggers, several GAT/A-01E2 Buster Daggers and GAT-01D1 Duel Daggers, and also managing to bring back enough supplies and ammo to keep said mobile suits functioning for a _very _long time.

That wasn't even the end of it. As not only had they secured the Mobile Suits, but they had reported getting the schematics of a new prototype Mobile Suit, as well as a fully functioning prototype as well that surpassed anything that the Earth Forces had stationed around them. And that wasn't the end of it either, as they had managed to link up with a team of five civilians - who were part of a defeated tank battalion - who successfully secured and operated the five prototype M1A3 Super Abrams, and gave a considerable amount of aid to Jordan's raid force, destroying _six _enemy Mobile Suits. And were also aided by a massive land-traveling Battleship Carrier with mobile suits that were even _more _advanced.

And yet that _still _wasn't the end of it, as now a massive AF Transport plane that was larger than a fucking _aircraft carrier _flew into the Yosemite International Airport, no longer playing an AF Transponder, but surprisingly a _Canadian _one, as the massive transport craft was captured by a Canadian Military force and their refugees - who had also succeeded in capturing four GAT-01A1 "105" Daggers, as well as six GAT-01 Strike Daggers that were onboard the massive craft when they captured it.

And now, what could be the biggest surprise of the day, was the arrival of three unknown Mobile Suits that did not match the AF configuration, claiming to belong to a group called ZAFT, and Jordan and Drew's team, along with the leader of the Canadian Force, and the five-man tank team were fast approaching them, along with the massive Battleship - which he had learned was called the _Archangel._

As soldiers and Marines gathered to look at the two ships in awe, the _Archangel _and the transport landed on the runway, and soon their respective hatches open, and their respective crews stepped out. Of course the soldiers all tensed when they saw the AF uniforms worn by Murrue and the others. However as they came out, they also saw walking with them were Jordan, D.J and other members of BSF, along with Ron, Jessica and their respective teams, so they knew to keep their mouths shut for now.

The group approached where the General and his guards were, as D.J and Jordan stepped forward, saluting. "General," Jordan said with a large grin. "Mission was - as you can see - an astounding success."

The CO of the I Marine Expeditionary Force could only nod at that.

"Good work, you just bought a lot more time by capturing these machines…" He then looked at the bridge crew. "…and also getting us some allies."

Jordan nodded as he stepped aside as Murrue stepped forward. "General, may I introduce the captain of the _Archangel,_ Captain Murrue Ramius," he said. "Captain Ramius, this is Lieutenant General John Toolan, commander of all U.S. Forces presently here at the San Joaquin Pocket."

Murrue nodded as she saluted the Marine General, who returned it.

"I have to thank you a lot, Captain," Toolan said. "If you hadn't arrived when you did, these two would've been dead."

Murrue nodded in return. "I'm glad I could be of help, General," she said.

Toolan then turned to Ron and Jessica. "And, you must be the one who commanded those tanks?" he asked.

Jessica nodded. "Yes, sir!" she said. "Me and my friends, actually. To be honest, I wasn't sure if we'd be of any use with them. But we did manage to decimate a large portion of the enemy base back during that raid. They never knew what hit them." She then gestured to her friends.

"This is my team." She motioned to a large man standing at six foot five with a mess of brown hair hanging over one of his blue eyes and he wore a tank top with blue jean shorts and leather combat boots. "Tony Larson."

She motioned to a woman with platinum blonde hair and dark blue eyes, her white tank top showing her athletic figure. She had a tattoo on her left forearm and she wore green cargo shorts with toeless boots on her feet. "Vanessa White."

Jessica nodded at Steven. "Steven Krane."

Then she looked at a man who was clad in a blue T-shirt and brown cargo pants with black boots. He had red hair and dark green eyes. "And Ben Goodall."

"We're the new First Armored Division, and we're going to try to support you the best we can," Steven said.

"Glad to have you here," the General said, with a small smile. "Nice to know we have _something _in our arsenal that can hurt those bastards." He then turned to the next new face - who was none other than Ron Pinkerton. "And you…?"

"Ronald Pinkerton," Ron said. "Acting commander, Canadian 22 Wing/CFB North Bay, or rather what's left of it. Apologies for the surprise my plane gave ya, but we only just recently switched that damn OMNI Enforcer IFF Transponder with a Canadian one, and we were beginning to run low on fuel."

"Doesn't help that Ron didn't have a clue how to do it!"

Ron glared at the shortest of his friends, who he had introduced as Tanner Armstrong. "I can put them together," he said. "I can't program them. Besides, we're civilians: military IFF is a little beyond me." He returned his gaze to the General. "My main job was getting those refugees to safety. Now I'm getting the hell out of here. This continent is lost, and it seems I'm the only one who seems to get that."

"So you plan on just giving up?" Jordan asked with narrowed eyes. "Let the AF win? Let them take our homes? Our countries? This continent is _far _from being lost Ron, we now have _Mobile Suits,_ and people to use them. There may not be many, but now we can actually _fight _against them. Besides… where would you go? The Earth Forces are practically _everywhere_ from North America to China. We have nowhere _to _run, Ron."

"I know that, Jorn, but what chance do we have?" Ron replied "We are outnumbered, outmaneuvered and outgunned at least one hundred to one! The only reason OMNI Enforcer hasn't completely taken over North America is China! Those bastards have the largest standing military on the PLANET. They're probably giving the Alliance more trouble than _we _are. Our best chance is to get the HELL out of North America and find someone who could actually stand a chance of beating them." Ron didn't mention ZAFT or Orb, mostly because he wasn't technically supposed to know about them.

"China's not doing as good as you think." The General said, surprising the others "They've got numbers, but lack any sort of experience, they're pretty much in the same boat as the rest of us… the only nation that seems to be putting up _any _fight against these guys, not only fighting them but also managing to kick most of them out… is Japan, and god knows how they did that, especially since the whole Fifth Carrier Strike Group got called back to support the homeland."

"Speaking of which..." He looked at Murrue. "You're wearing an OMNI Enforcer officer's uniform, yet you flew in to save our asses. So who the fuck do YOU work for, Lieutenant Commander?"

"We no longer serve OMNI Enforcer, or the Earth Alliance," Murrue said, her eyes narrowing a bit. "After they deemed us all _expendable_ when they tried to have all of us killed when the Cyclops System in JOSH-A went off, we deserted and joined the Orb Union. We simply haven't gotten new uniforms."

"You pulled a Marko Ramius out of your ass, then," Ron said, causing Murrue to blink in surprise "A who?" She asked.

"Tom Clancy's _Hunt for Red October_," he said. "Long story." Ron was internally laughing, seeing as he just referenced the person who she was technically named after. '_This is fun! Haven't had this much fun since..._'

That brought up a depressing thought, ending his amusement. "Either way, I'd rather take my chances off this continent than pulling a Thermopylae or an Alamo and dying a hero's death, which is kind of what you guys are going to try and pull," Ron continued. "I'm not risking my life or my friends' in a suicidal last stand."

"I doubt flying out of that big bird of ours is a wise idea to begin with, Mr. Pinkerton," the General said. "Radio chatter picked up increased AF movement since the Raid, and they've likely set up Anti-Air defenses with the arrival of your ship and the _Archangel,_ even if we refueled your plane, you'd get shot out of the sky, and with the increase of AF Troops in the area… it's likely they're about to start their final push to overrun us. We're all in this boat together."

"He's right, and It's _not _suicidal, since we have a plan," Jordan said. "We have some reinforcements coming from Nevada, they'll help break apart the EA forces that have us surrounded here so we can launch a counterattack, and secure our flanks. With Mobile Suits now in our arsenal, we can take out their Launcher Daggers that have been pounding the shit out of us since day one."

"Wonderful," Ron groaned out sarcastically. "What the fuck is this, a modern version of the Trojan War? All the world's heroes coming to one place for everlasting glory? God, I hate my life. If I find the bastard responsible for this, I will find a way to send him or her to the _Dead Space_ universe!"

* * *

In Afghanistan, Anton Podolski sneezed as the Osprey Tilt rotor continued it's flight to Bagram Air Base.

"Bless you," said Patricia, while Anton rubbed his nose.

'_Someone is talking about killing me,_'he thought, before smirking. '_Not that I can blame them or anything._'

"Ma'am! We're approaching Bagram… WHAT THE FUCK!?" shouted the pilot, causing Patricia to get up from her seat and head to the cockpit to see what's wrong..

"What's the…" she said, before her eyes widened at what she saw, parts of the base were burning with tanks and other vehicles of unknown design moving about. "Well, that explains why we aren't able to contact anyone outside of the base." Patricia said, "But who the hell ARE they? Those things don't look Chinese...or anyone else, for that matter."

The tanks (which bore a slight resemblance to the Abrams, Challenger and Leopard MBTs, if not for the second gun) turned their turreted guns toward the CV-22. "Oh, that's bad." The pilot said as the tanks opened fire, but they clearly hadn't remembered that the Osprey was one of the most agile transports ever built.

The tiltrotor banked right, avoiding most of the shell-fire, but the tanks were the least of their problems as AAA and missiles, the second biggest threat to aircraft, started coming their way.

"Shit, shit shit shit!" The pilot shouted as he moved the Osprey as fast as it could away from the Triple A before they opened fire again. "Everyone hang on, it's gonna be a bumpy ride!"

The Tilt-rotor continued to evade the Triple A fire, as well as launching countermeasures against the missiles, they did this for a few minutes, until suddenly, they stopped.

"They stopped firing," said the co-pilot as he breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God..."

It was then the radio came alive.

"_Attention incoming Osprey, please land immediately or we will fire on you,_" a voice said, which caused the pilots and Patricia to get pissed at that.

"WHAT IN THE HELL DO YOU THINK WE WERE TRYING TO DO, YOU ASSHOLES!?" the pilot shouted. "And what happened to the first FUCKING warning!?"

"_You don't get one,_" the voice said. "_Land NOW or you will be shot down._"

The Colonel snarled as she looked at the pilot. "Do as the bastard says," she growled.

At that moment, the Osprey flew past what looked like several giant robots. They clearly had CIWS cannons mounted in the head, and those rifles looked like they didn't use bullets. "Doctor, I think your project just backfired in the worst way possible." The tiltrotor landed less than a minute later, and was quickly surrounded by enemy troops. All of whom were armed with assault rifles and rocket launchers.

"Uhh, maybe it was a bad idea coming here," said the co-pilot.

"No shit, Sherlock."

* * *

**Meanwhile in Alaska**

* * *

While Colonel Rosen and company were forced down in Afghanistan and the BSF and Ron's group were getting ready for a fight with OMNI Enforcer, what was left of Alaskan Command, survivors from the Canadian Armed Forces that hauled ass toward Alaska after Edmonton was hit and, ironically, Russian Federation Army forces were closing in on what was once Joint Supreme Headquarters Alaska, more commonly called JOSH-A. After Operation Spitbreak, OMNI Enforcer practically said 'fuck it' and left the former Russian/American state alone. As such, US, Russian and Canadian forces were surviving. Barely.

Currently held up at Alaska was the survivors of the United States Navy's Seventh Fleet, originally stationed at Yokosuka Japan, but were forced to leave the island nation to defend their homelands. While the fleet had taken considerable losses, Carrier Strike Group 5 was among the survivors, including the _Nimitz-_class Aircraft Carrier 'USS _George Washington_'.

Also, from the west across the sea were the survivors of the Russian Pacific and Northern fleets, after being defeated by the Eurasian Federation's forces the survivors of the two Russian fleets made their way to Alaska, where they heard had almost no Earth Forces present. While both fleets had taken serious damage, they still managed to save many of their Submarines, as well as two _Kirov-_class Battlecruisers, and the RFS _Admiral Kuznetsov_.

The same could not be said about the Canadian's Pacific Fleet, however. They had taken severe losses during the fighting, and were now down to just a handful of ships, namely the few _Halifax_-Class frigates they had, along with the _Iroquois_-Class destroyer HMCS _Algonquin,_ the _Victoria-_Class submarine HMCS_ Victoria,_ a _Protecteur_-class auxiliary oiler replenishment vessel, and a _Kingston_-Class minesweeper. Most of their military was scattered across the north, with what few survivors that hadn't made it to Alaska had headed to the few United States holdouts in the north that have not been overrun by the AF.

All in all, the combined forces in term of ships numbered around fifty vessels, while a large force it may be, considering the technological advantage currently held by the Earth Forces, the numbers almost meant nothing.

But then… fortune began to settle among the forces of Alaska.

After interrogating Earth Forces prisoners, they discovered the former location of JOSH-A, which was still a crater. However while the main facility was destroyed, some of the smaller bases which surrounded the main JOSH-A base survived the Cyclops System, and inside they managed to find a handful of stockpiles of EA Vehicles and Weapons, such as their Linear Tanks and Artillery, and they also managed to salvage ruined wrecks of ZAFT mobile suits they uncovered, as well as securing intact Machines in abandoned EA Facilities, likely used as samples for their own MS Development projects.

Among the many models were CGUE's, GiNN OCHER's, DiNN's, ZuOOTs, BuCUE's, and even a few GOOHn's and ZnO's.

With these MS, including the ones from the _Spengler_-class, which was called the _Rumsfeld_, the group had a force of over a hundred mobile suits. Of course the OS on the ZAFT had to be modified a bit, which of course, was thanks to Tom. Even so, it was going to take time to retrain the pilots to pilot the damn things. Time, unfortunately, was almost always not on their side. On the job training was ALWAYS the worst. But they were making the best of it. Dozens of pilots were relearning how to pilot at once, including pilots that were shot down that managed to eject. The Canadian CF-188 pilots, especially, gleefully looked forward to the day where OMNI Enforcer would be getting their asses handed to them.

As for Ryu himself, he was looking over the system of his 'newly acquired' Gundam. He now found out it's true name and model number was the GAT-X129 Wrath. He couldn't help but grin as he learned more about his mobile suit. It had Trans-Phase Shift Armor, just like the ones used by the Druggie Extendeds, while the most surprising features were the hardpoints for Striker Packs, and able to equip the Fortresta Mode Armor. However, his favorite feature was the 105mm M534 "Kattun" Beam Sniper rifle. And the day was coming where he would be using it to fuck everything up.

Like everyone was thinking, China was dealing damage to OMNI Enforcer, but the only thing they were really doing were pissing the RoEA branch of OMNI Enforcer off. Three and a half million cannon fodder troops were pissing them off, but unwittingly buying North America time to fall back. That time was well-spent, despite the heavy losses. China's PLAAF especially pissed off the ground troops until the Daggers were called in, and while the Chinese still had large numbers of MiG-21-based Chengdu J-7s and MiG-19-based Nanchang Q-5s and even a few Su-27/30 Flankers, the Daggers were slaughtering them.

As his eastern Canadian online buddy once told him, though, you couldn't spell slaughter without laughter. And at least a few people in OMNI Enforcer and even those among the fleet were laughing their asses off as the largest armed force sans OMNI Enforcer was slowly whittled down to nothing.

However, oddly enough while China was slowly being defeated, one of the few nations that was successfully holding their own against the Earth Forces were - surprisingly - the Japanese, as reports have come in about the JMSDF's navy largely still intact, and their ground and air forces were giving the EA a lot of trouble. Exactly how they were managing to pull this off was unknown since the Seventh Fleet left Yokosuka, but rumors were getting around.

He shook his head as he continued working on the OS to his specifications. For the past few days, he noticed how fast he was typing, much like that of Coordinators, or Second Generation Extendeds. Of course, he wasn't complaining.

There were also the refugees that finally came in from the east. Some were from Ontario, and a few were from North Bay. None, however, were the team that managed to be a pain in OMNI Enforcer's gigantic ass. One woman in her mid 60s kept asking if either of her grandsons had been seen, along with a younger woman in her late 30s who seemed to be her daughter. They took family seriously, and not even the remnants of the military were stopping them from looking for them.

"Please, has anyone seen my grandsons?" the 60 year old said. Ryu watched as they continued to make their rounds. The war had torn dozens, if not hundreds, of families apart. He could only hope that they could find their family, whoever they were.

* * *

**San Joaquin Pocket, on board LCAM-X01A **_**Archangel**_

* * *

Ron sneezed as he typed in the password and the separate access code to his Dagger's computers. '_Alliance idiots should've done this for the G-Project Gundams,_' he thought to himself. Sure, Gundams fighting Gundams was awesome story-telling and all, but Ron preferred thinking practically. That was why he thought North America was finished, rightly or wrongly. As such, he was locking his Dagger down so no one could fuck with the OS. He saw no need to tune it, nor could he. It was perfectly fine.

But since he was planning on joining the _Archangel's _crew (in his words, they need someone with their head screwed on right, even if it was Ron) he wanted to make sure that no one could make sure he couldn't 'finish the job' when it came to MS combat. He pictured a few avoidable battles in _SEED _and _SEED Destiny_ that could've been avoided or at least postponed for a short time had Kira just killed the pilots of the Mobile Suits he fought against.

The debacle over Mendel Colony was one such event. Kira rescuing the _Eternal_ directly led to ZAFT tracking them to Mendel thanks to recovering the pilots from the disabled GINNs. That led to the Freedom getting its' ass kicked and OMNI Enforcer getting Neutron Jammer Cancelers. Sure, that last point was inevitable and everyone knew it, but they could've delayed it by a few days, if not months. Then there was Operation Angel Down. If Kira just killed Shinn, that whole thing would've ended differently. But Ron had no such issues. And if he could do something about that, he would.

Outside the Dagger, close by, Jessica looked at her team as they finally finished up resupplying their tanks. "All right. That's that," Vanessa said as she wiped her hands on her pants.

"Good," Jessica said. "Anyone have anything else to say?"

Steven just shrugged as he leaned against his tank. "I don't know if this is even practical, but don't you think we should ask Jordan if we can provide him with armored support?"

"Why would you even ask that to begin with?" Ben asked incredulously.

"Steven's got a point," Tony noted. He shrugged his shoulders and ran a hand through his hair. "I mean, Mobile Suits are good and all, but sometimes you need armored support, Ben. And tanks can get into places that Mobile Suits can't. Plus, when used in cities with debris and stuff lining the streets, it makes the tanks even more effective. Remember World War II when Germany was bombed and the Germans took advantage of the ruins to hold out."

"I know that!" Ben snapped.

"Enough," Vanessa said. "I know what you're saying, but Ben also has a point. We may need to act only if we have our own support of a Mobile Suit or in this case, a Gundam like Jordan's."

"Okay. But it still comes down to the question. Can we provide armored support?" Steven noted.

"I agree," Jessica said. "And that's what we're gonna ask him. It'll be a win-win for both of us. We provide armored support and his team protects us if we need it or are ambushed."

Steven and the others nodded. "All right," Tony said. "I'll go ask."

He stood up and walked over to where the Schwartz Calamity was parked. Jordan was outside the cockpit working on one of the legs.

"Hey, Jordan!" Tony called. "I got a question for you!"

"What?" He asked without looking in their direction, his attention focused entirely on the Schwarze and it's maintenance.

"We were wondering if you'd be needing any armored support during the coming battles!" Tony shouted.

"Possibly," Jordan said. "Though I doubt you guys will be getting many CQC matches like your last fight - you guys will be pretty much fucked if you end up going against more advanced and flight capable MS. The best you guys could do is provide long-range fire support, setting ambushes and such. Leave the heavy Anti-MS fighting to us."

"We understand that. And we're aware that we could get taken out," Tony explained. "But still, we feel that we can do so much more when it comes to fighting in the cities where an MS can't fight in close quarters. And if I'm right, we may be fighting in such a situation at some point in the future."

"Go _Igloo _if you want to keep fighting with those tanks, Titanic!" She looked up to spot Ron hanging out of the Dagger's cockpit.

"I know what you mean, Ron!" she shouted back. "But to be honest, sometimes nothing can beat a tank in urban warfare! Mobile Suits can move in a city, true, but can they fit inside spaces that are small?"

"Tell that to Packard! He fucked everything up!" That was a reference to Norris Packard, the badass Gouf Custom pilot from _The 08th MS Team_, who destroyed several Guntanks, very distant relatives of the Abrams, during one of the final episodes. Of course, he was trying to AVOID a direct reference: they weren't exactly alone.

"Not like what we know!" Jessica snapped. "In fact, we did just that as we fled from Aberdeen! We managed to defeat a Long Dagger in what was once Denver, and even though we did sustain some damage, we took it down. The whole city was a major war zone, and the Dagger was attacking any survivors. We saved them and they fled to the mountains. Steven's tank lost a track and got a mangled machine gun barrel, but we fixed it as we stopped over at an old Army base."

"And HOW many tanks does the US Army have left, hmm? You're not going to have a choice soon. And it's adapt or die."

"We know that!" Steven shot back. "Why do you think we're going to help?!" He stepped closer to Ron's Dagger. "The truth of the matter is, though, that this is all we know how to drive at the moment! None of us here can pilot an MS, and even if we did have extras, we wouldn't know how to pilot them. Tank driving is much easier, and we can snipe at enemy Mobile Suits from long range with these things! I have to agree, but we're just stuck with no other choice right now! And that means we'll find ways to adapt on our own, even if it means modding the tanks we have."

"As for how many we have left, I can guess that we only have about maybe fifty or so left if the wreckage is anything to go by," Ben muttered. "That's not much, but at least it's a start."

"Then you can take the fucking Leopards," Ron said.

"Huh?" Tony looked over. "Why? Those are yours."

"No, the Daggers are mine. The tanks belong to the Canadian Armed Forces. You're just borrowing them. Besides, I'm sticking with the _Archangel_, and a tank is zero help in space warfare."

"Any extra help we could use, Tony," Jessica said. "And he's right. They do belong to the Canadians. And if we can't fight in space in our tanks, maybe we can act as fire support with the ship's guns."

"Right. We'll be sticking around as well, but we'll help in other ways," Steven added.

Tony nodded. "All right."

"Just don't do anything overly stupid. If you do… well, we'll be feeding the space vultures." Ron rappelled down using the zipline. "I'll be helping Dylan and Tanner if you need me."

Jessica and her team nodded. If anything, though, they would not mess anything up. They were determined to prevent that.

In the 105 Dagger that belonged to D.J., said pilot sighed as he listened to the conversation between Ron and Jessica's team. Truth to be told, he didn't care if any of them wanted to use either mobile suits, armours, tanks, or fighters. If it has a gun and can launch missiles, that was fine in his book. Of course, he knew Ron was right about tanks being useless in space, but they were still useful on the ground as they can troll the AF MS teams and make good decoys.

Jordan meanwhile was working on the Schwarze Calamity, as he was now working on the Calamity Packs it possessed, namely the Aile and Sword packs. When he looked through the technical specifications of the Calamity - as well as the other captured mobile suits, he discovered something about their beam weapons - namely their beam sabers and all bladed beam weaponry. Unlike in other Universes where Beam Sabers could collide with others, Cosmic Era beam tech had no repelling factor, meaning that two beams intercepting would just phase through one another.

This actually answered why during SEED Destiny, when Shinn and Athrun fought in the Destiny and Infinite Justice Gundams, why Athrun was able to slice clean through the Destiny's Arondight beam sword in the final battle - there was not repelling factor in _either _beams.

Hence why Jordan was working on fixing that error in their own Mobile Suits. It was surprisingly a simple correction in the particle output of the beam sabers and beam swords, which he managed to figure out with some help from Kira Yamato and the engineers of the _Archangel,_ and the refits were quickly being applied to all Mobile Suits they had in their arsenal. Now, their Beam Sabers should be capable of intercepting EA Beam Sabers.

Aside from that though, his machine just needed a handful of other refits he saw fit, namely a slight change to the "Schwert Gewehr" Anti-Ship swords where - in addition to refitting the beams - altered a small flat area near the top of the sword where - if it hit an enemy Mobile Suit - would just bounce off doing no damage. He was told it was a weight, similar to how and why Helicopter rotor blades have something similar to keep them balanced and not flying all over the place.

Thankfully however it was a simple fix, as the area was flattened into an edge, and became a bit more like the Excalibur anti-ship swords of the Sword Impulse, also being capable of projecting the beam to surround not just the side, but also the full tip of the blade as well. He was also able to redevelop the hilts of the two Anti-Ship swords so they could connect into a double-bladed form - much like the Impulse Gundam could.

With those small edits, Jordan was far more confident with the capabilities of their Mobile Suits, since they now had a few advantages that the EA didn't have for the coming battle. Jordan was finding that he had an amazing knack at maintaining Mobile Suits, over the weeks he's worked with salvaged wrecks of EA machines, as well as fooling around salvaged MS Computers, so he was able to learn the insides and outs of Mobile Suits, however now that he had working and functioning models, he could do all sorts of things with them now. What time he wasn't spending with the rest of BSF or the _Archangel_ crew he was spending working on the Schwarze Calamity and the other machines they had.

He said it's because he felt like 'this is where I belong', which had most of the others confused as to what he meant by that. However, the only one who got what he meant, was D.J.

The two were also working on kinks in the Strike E's design schematics, including the Noir Striker's beam swords, modifying them the same as the Schwarze Calamity. For Jorn, it was an opportunity to make one of the most popular Gundams from the SEED universe more deadly.

"Man, you and Kira are exactly alike," a voice said, and Jorn blinked as he looked up and spotted Chief Murdoch, with a bit of an amused smirk. "Back when he piloted the Strike, he'd spend a lot of his time working on its OS, working out kinks and allowing it to work properly… you just take it a step further and make the Mobile Suit _itself_ better."

Jordan chuckled a bit, as he scratched the back of his head. "What can I say? I love working on stuff like these," he said, as he turned away from the Schwarze Calamity for a moment. "Since I was a kid, I loved robotics. I grew up watching shows like Megas XLR, Megaman, MechWarrior, Steel Battalion, Code Geass, Vandread… I love the idea behind massive machines fighting, and helping humans." He looked up at the Schwarze Gundam's face. "Technology _was _improving before this big universal merge happened… to the point where we could've had them… but I always thought the idea of piloting giant mecha was a thing of imagination and science fiction…"

He smiled. "But now… it's real," he said. "It's all real… Giant Robots, or as you call them, Mobile Suits… they're simply _amazing._ It's like a dream come true… granted, I wished my dreams coming true didn't involve all this damn chaos going on around the world, but… you take what you can. When I piloted the Schwarze here… I never felt so alive in my entire life, that thrill I got when in the middle of fighting, added to the awe of piloting such a magnificent machine. Mobile Suits _are _the future, the future of not just warfare, but for everything. Combat is just scratching the surface of what machines like these can do." He then chuckled a bit as he patted the armor of the Schwarze. "Ain't that right, Calamity?"

Murdoch could only look at, what he can describe, as a major mecha otaku. Unlike Kira who hated the very idea of piloting Mobile suits, THIS kid was different.

His thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of the 105 Dagger pilot - D.J. if he remembered his name - come up to them.

"Say Chief, does this ship have a paint shop here or something?" he asked. "I'm only asking because I need to repaint my 105 to avoid... friendly fire."

"Sure, plenty of it!" Chief said, pointing in one direction. "It's one of the few things we have a surplus of since we left Heliopolis, pick your colors."

"Yeah, good idea Patriot," Jordan said, nodding. "I heard the General had the Captured machines do the same - their repainting them in MARPAT and Camo color schemes though, not much for creativity."

"Could be worse. According to Mr. Jackass over there-" Murdock hooked a thumb at Ron, who was helping Dylan with his Sword Dagger. "He's not going to even bother repainting his Mobile Suit."

"Then he better hope his IFF keeps us from shooting at him by accident," Jordan said shrugging, "Though I can't blame him, since I ain't painting mine - Calamity is already in my favorite colors: Black, Red and Gold."

Ron then approached the trio. "I don't believe this," he muttered, causing the others to look at him.

"What?" D.J. asked.

"Dylan's Dagger's going to need a pair of extra beam sabers," he said. "Same with mine and Tanner's. Might as well have unit commonality."

"Where the hell are you going to mount them, huh?" Murdock asked, before Ron pointed at his forearm.

"There," he said. "On the Dagger's forearms. Nice way to surprise someone and I doubt anyone's going to be able to disarm our Suits that easily if those sabers are properly mounted."

Jordan looked at the Daggers, before he shrugged. "I think I could pull it off," he said. "Just give me a while and we'll see if we can mount them on. We've got plenty of spare parts from salvaged units we've destroyed over the week, so parts aren't a problem. I've got plans to make an upgraded version of the Strike Daggers for US Military use exclusively."

"Don't count on it," Ron said. "OMNI Enforcer, contrary to popular belief, isn't stupid. They'll take a few looks at those 'custom' Daggers and copy them. It's happened throughout history and it's never going to stop."

"Yeah, but it will take them time to make them," Jordan said, "Plus the upgrades I have in mind are pretty minor, just using the tech behind Strike and 105 Daggers. Add an additional Head Vulcan, an extra beam saber, give it those anti-armor knives like the ones Schwarze and the Strike have, as well as giving it more weapon choices like the Strike's Bazooka, Grand Slam Sword, and such. May make it so they can use individual weapons from Striker Packs as well without needing to mount the whole unit, like the Agni Cannon and Schwert Gewehr Sword. I'll just call it the Strike Dagger Kai or something like that."

"Well, in regards to OMNI not being stupid, to be honest we were caught off guard after we encountered a Long Dagger back in Denver. We bugged out due to thick smoke released by the fires raging in the city," Jessica said. "That pilot nearly wiped us out if not for the fires."

"Like I said, they're not stupid," Ron said, nodding. "They just have political leaders that are stupid. Like ZAFT."

Murdock glanced at Ron. "Wait, how do you know about ZAFT?" he asked a bit suspiciously.

"That plane I hijacked was at a base," Ron said shrugging while completely lying through his teeth. "I looked at the reports and memorized them."

"Similar story here," Jordan said. "Me and D.J. learned some bits about ZAFT through interrogated EA Soldiers and data we captured from raids on their camps and such." He leaned back. "It's all stupid… you're at war with these guys, _just _because they have altered genes? That's fucking stupid! It's like going to war with someone because they have a different language than you!"

Jessica nodded. "I know. I mean, you're all human, right? So why does the AF and EA hate them so much? All because their parents wanted to give them a better chance at life?" She shook her head. "Those bastards behind this need to grow up and have some sense beaten into their thick skulls."

Murdock sighed. "I'd agree with you on that…" he said. "Blue Cosmos is mostly to blame for that, they used to be a simple environmentalist group… then George Glenn, the first coordinator, admitted to the world what he was, and next thing you know they're a political terrorist organization who want Coordinators purged for their 'Blue and Pure world'."

"And that's why they need to get some sense beaten into their pea-sized brains," Jessica said as she leaned back against her tank. "Either that or they need to just get to know one of these…Coordinators? Then maybe they'll see that they're human beings despite their altered genes. They are _far_ from space monsters."

"'For every Julian Bashir, there is a Khan Noonian Singh waiting in the wings'," Ron said, as he shook his head, partly quoting a line from Star Trek. "To be frank, I understand their fear. But there is such a thing as 'leave them alone, they won't bother you'."

Steven nodded. "We know. Coordinators… are human too, right? I mean, come on!" He threw his hands up. "It's just plain senseless in my opinion!"

"I agree," Vanessa added. "But we have to figure out what our next option is if we're to try and find some way to get back home. Or at least do something to try and end this."

Ben placed a hand on his head. "But how? That's where we're all stuck. And to be honest, they're right on something. OMNI isn't stupid. We need to think this through and find a way to _outsmart_ them at their own game."

"The easiest option is to end the war between the Alliance and ZAFT." Ron said, "End that, then we'll have only two problems to deal with: killing those Blue Cosmos motherfuckers and sending you all _back where you belong_. Because honestly, you don't belong in **OUR **universe."

Jessica looked at Ron. "Wait! Are you trying to say _we_ can't be of use?!" she snapped, getting to her feet in a flash. "Or are you talking about these guys?" She waved an arm at the _Archangel_ crew.

Ron glared at her, anger seeping through his voice. "Use your head," he said. "The second they got here, the already politically and ethnically unstable planet was thrown into chaos. If we send them back, we'll get as close to back to normal as we can get."

Jessica relaxed. "Oh. Got it. Sorry." She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "I just want to end this as soon as possible, and I kind of lost it for a moment."

"I doubt we can so easily go back to normal after this, Ron," Jordan said. "Our worlds have already merged… as impossible as the initial merge should be, I doubt that separating out worlds will be just as easy. Plus… if we can deal with Blue Cosmos, the Atlantic Federation, and this Earth Alliance… maybe they won't _have _to go."

D.J. nodded in agreement. "Plus, this 'Merge of the Worlds' did help in a few things…" he said, and the others looked at him in confusion.

"Like what?" Ben said, and they could see the small smirk on his face.

"Well, it got rid of the current Administration running this country," he said, and then listed off a few other things. "It will also give the U.S. access to technology we don't have, be a wakeup call for those idiot politicians, and plus, even though it's ironic, no more stupid Gun Control Laws."

"I can understand the first two, but gun control laws? Seriously? With all this going on?" Jessica asked. "First things first. We take care of matters relating to the war, then we can focus on getting the US back on track and back to what it used to be before the Merge." Then she shrugged. "Or at least as close as it can get."

"I actually like the idea of the Atlantic Federation," Ron said. "Besides, unless you've forgotten, the US has gotten itself into things it had no right to far too many times. Get rid of any corporate and religious influence, and you're getting better, but eventually, someone's going to get the idea that 'America's number one' when it really isn't. I don't mourn the loss of either Canada OR the United States. I just wish it DIDN'T have to involve massive numbers of civilian casualties."

"I agree, but _only_ if the Atlantic Federation is not a bunch of racist, imperialist bastards!" Tony hissed. "That is going way too far in my book!"

"Hence, killing Blue Cosmos and their backers." Ron said, "Get rid of them, you solve one of two problems."

"Or at least stall it," Ben muttered. "Blue Cosmos needs to be _eradicated_, meaning we have to terminate all and any remnants that could remain in the aftermath. That means we have to show people the end results of what could happen." He looked Ron dead in the eyes. "We have to show what Blue Cosmos does...if we can figure out what they're up to."

Tony's eyes hardened. "I know this may sound crazy, but I got a weird feeling from one of the pilots back during that raid. And… it seemed to me like…" He placed a hand to his head. "There was something wrong with that man. He… I could… sense… something off… And…" He removed his hand. "I think that that pilot was someone's child once."

Jessica and her team knew what he meant, even if he didn't outright say it. Vanessa gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. "We need to stop these guys!" she muttered.

"Way ahead of you," Ben muttered as he rolled his eyes.

"And we'll get to that," Jessica said. "But right now, we need to think about what our next move should be."

Everyone nodded at that.

"My God, I'm dealing with anime characters with self-inflated egos." Ron groaned "I'll go to the bridge and deal with the crew up there: maybe I'll find someone LESS dramatic."

Jessica and the team tensed, but let it slide. They had their own problems to worry about.

"Just for the record, we're just as real as you are, Ron," Tony muttered as he walked past them.

"Then SPEAK like you are," Ron shouted back as he walked toward the hatch and left the hanger.

Tony gritted his teeth, but let it slide. However, he knew he was right. They had to start thinking more realistically. But that didn't explain that odd feeling he had gotten from the Extended. It was almost like he had… an extra sense, so to speak.

That sense would prove to be invaluable later on in the war.

"Now that we have that out of the way," D.J. said, and turned back to Murdock. "What paint spray machines you got? Hand-held, or otherwise?"

Murdock grinned. "Follow me and see for yourselves," he said, and led D.J. and the other MS pilots away.

* * *

**Meanwhile**

**Near the California/Nevada Border**

* * *

The Refugee Convoy from Colorado was entering the final stretch of its push to the Sierra Nevadas, with Takeshi's Sword/Aile Dagger in the lead. They'd left Nellis AFB about six hours ago, and were getting close to the outer perimeters of the main US Military Encampment.

There hadn't been much in the way of combat so far, which had given Takeshi more time to tweak the OS and some of the other settings. He did have a little help - one of the other Refugees in the convoy was not only a Gundam Fan, but a Physics Major, so she was helping figure out just how everything worked and was supposed to work.

And two hours previously, they'd found the same problem Jordan had with the Beam Sabers and Anti-Ship Sword, and were working together in the cockpit to fix the problem, even as they were moving.

"I will admit it explains why Beam Sabers were always blocked with shields in SEED and SEED Destiny," Takeshi remarked as he tweaked the settings on the Beam Sabers, having already modified the Schwert Gewehr, "but seriously, how in the world did CE MS Designers manage to avoid putting a repelling factor into their Bladed Beam Weaponry? It seems like it'd be a very simple feature to add."

"It could be to time limitations," a feminine voice stated from behind him. "They may have cut back on some features in order to get their units into combat quicker, plus, what is the natural reaction when you see a sword coming at you?"

"Either get out of the way, or block it with a shield," Takeshi replied. "Still, if you can't get out of the way and don't have a shield, your next instinct is to reach for a weapon of some kind to use instead - and if you use a sword, you can turn your block into a counterattack with proper technique, though with energy blades you need some kind of repelling factor to make sure that works."

"And if you use these blades against the right opponent, then they would be caught off guard when the beams don't repel one another, although any pilot worth their salt would be aware of it," the woman informed. "Still, could be a useful trick when needed."

"Maybe," Takeshi admitted. "Still, I like having options." He finished his typing, then leaned back slightly. "OK, I've modified the Sabers to match the settings we gave the Schwert Gewehr. This should give the blades the necessary repelling factor. Thanks for the help figuring out the proper settings, Linda."

"Not a problem," Linda McTavish informed from behind him, her ocean blue eyes matching the grin on her face as she tucked a strand of her fire red hair behind an ear, she was wearing a simple tank top blue jean combo with a longsleeve shirt wrapped around her waist. "At least I'm actually able to put those ten years in university to use in something other than theory."

"Yeah, I know," Takeshi replied. "I spent over six years at Arapahoe Community College, learning how to write programming code as part of their Game Design and Development Degree Program." He chuckled. "Never thought that I'd be able to put that to use in working on a Mobile Suit's OS, but the code the AF was using almost reads like Javascript."

"Hah, tell me about it, but some of the vectors just made no sense whatsoever…" she muttered, more to herself than to Takeshi. "I don't think the guys who did the programming had the proper training."

"Probably," Takeshi replied. "Well, no use worrying about it - and any flaws as a result of their lack of program training will only help us out in the end." He frowned. "I'll do my part to ensure that no one else has to lose their family at the hands of the AF and their Blue Cosmos masters, like I did."

Linda placed a hand on Takeshi's shoulder, as a fire of determination burned in her eyes.

"We'll get them for what they did, Takeshi," she said. "For everyone they killed."

"Yeah," Takeshi replied, determination burning in his eyes, too. "No matter how long it takes, Blue Cosmos is going down."

"Agreed," Linda affirmed lightly, hitting his shoulder with her fist. "When everything went to shit, goddamn, we had to sacrifice a lot of people to ensure they didn't find us at Nellis..."

"Yeah, I remember we didn't find you until an hour or so before we left," Takeshi remarked. "How long had you been hiding out in that bunker, anyway?"

"Only seven days, although… it felt like years, trapped underground, not even half of the foragers and scavengers returning with supplies…they were told that if they even suspected of being tailed, we couldn't return to the base, just so that we could remain safe…"

"That had to have been rough, even if it wasn't that long," Takeshi remarked. "Glad we managed to find you, and that you agreed to join us." He then looked up at her and smiled. "And thanks again for the help on this thing."

"Glad to help," Linda assured. "At least it gets me away from the lab for a bit, I swear, some of those calculations the scientists are coming up with to try and explain what happened are giving me a headache… not to mention their rants…"

"Ouch," Takeshi muttered. "That's gotta be a pain…" Suddenly, there was a beeping from one of the monitors, causing Takeshi to take a look. "We're getting close to the location the forces in the Sierra Nevadas gave as their base," he informed, even as he brought his Dagger down into a kneeling position. "Probably a good idea for you to get out of here - yes, we can squeeze you behind me here in the cockpit if we need to, but if we run into a combat situation, I doubt it'd be too comfortable, practical, or safe for you to be back there."

Linda snorted in agreement. "Yeah, I'd rather not get knocks to the head," she informed as she squeezed around his chair to exit the cockpit. "After all, if every mobile suit is like this then we need all hands on deck to complete the algorithms."

"Yeah," Takeshi said as he opened the cockpit hatch, allowing Linda to step out and onto the machine's hand which he had positioned as a platform for her. "Once we link up with the forces ahead of us, and deal with whatever assault they seem to be sending our way, maybe we can chat some more - share stories about our lives before this mess happened, that sort of thing."

"Sounds good," she agreed, sending an easy smile at him. "I'll make sure to hold you to it."

Takeshi smiled back, mentally wondering why her smile caused his chest to tighten slightly, before manipulating the controls and gently lowering the hand with Linda on it to the ground.

Linda waved as she hopped off, before heading off towards the 'lab trucks' where all of the scientists and researchers that they had gathered were situated.

Takeshi closed the hatch, brought his machine to standing once more, and started forward again.

They had no idea when the AF would strike the Sierra Nevada forces again, so the sooner they got there, the better.

* * *

**Meanwhile - San Joaquin Pocket**

**US Military HQ**

* * *

Jordan, D.J., and Ron had been called by General Toolan to meet with him about something urgent, saying that they had some 'unexpected visitors' while they were away. Deciding to investigate, the three did as the General requested as they headed to the HQ of the US Forces were.

The three passed through a set of doors in the base, where they soon found the Lieutenant General himself along with a few of his guards, however they were not the only ones inside as there were also three figures also in the room - two men and a woman with an eyepatch, wearing black and purple ZAFT Normal Suits. Upon seeing them, the three immediately recognized them as the Tri-Star team from SEED Destiny, but they hid their surprise well.

"Well, when the fuck did the pirates get here?" Ron asked, as everyone looked at him as if he had grown a second head.

"Do you ALWAYS swear?" D.J. asked.

"When you have to deal with idiots back home, you'll quickly realize that normal words are useless when trying to get through someone's head," Ron said.

Hilda chuckled at his excuse. "Still, pirates?" she asked. "What gave you THAT impression?"

He pointed at her eyepatch. "THAT'S why," he said. "Besides, I thought a joke would break the ice."

Jordan sighed as he shook his head, before turning to the General. "Sir, who are they?" He asked, while he knew _exactly _who they were, he had to fake ignorance at the moment.

"These three…" the General said, gesturing to them, "claim they are from the Zodiac Alliance of Freedom Treaty, that ZAFT group that we've been hearing about from EA prisoners since day one. They call themselves the Tri-star Team."

D.J. nodded as he looked at the group. "I can assume you're the 'space monsters' that these EA fuck heads are talking about." he said, acting like he didn't know.

Hilda sighed at that. "Unfortunately… yes," she said. "As long as none of you pull a…"

Ron took in a deep breath. "KHAN!" he shouted in a loud voice. "We'll be perfectly fine."

Jordan and D.J. looked at Ron weirdly once again.

"That sounded a lot like William Shatner," Jordan said blinking.

Ron shrugged "Don't know how, but I can change the pitch of my voice from a normal male one…" He said as he smiled for a moment before continuing in a different voice. "Or a schoolgirl's to just about anyone's. Been able to since I was 7."

Everyone gave him a deadpanned look.

"Please don't…" they all said at the same time, before D.J. blinked.

"Wait a minute, _any_ voice?" he asked and Ron looked at him. "Maybe," he said. "I don't do it that often and I'd need to hear the voice a few times before I can try copying it."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a candy. "Anyone want a Campino?" he asked. "Managed to get a few hundred packages out of Thunder Bay before the bastards caught up with us."

Hilda raised her hand and Ron tossed her a peach one before pulling another one out of his pocket. "Still, I can understand why they hate you: stronger, faster, smarter," he listed them off. "If I were in charge of the whole thing, I'd just get rid of the genes that cause diseases like cancer or AIDS and mental disorders like Asperger's Syndrome. But that's what ifs."

"I got no problems with it, honestly," Jordan said shrugging. "You look human, act human, have the same DNA as a human even if it's enhanced a bit, so you're still human in my books."

D.J. nodded in agreement. "I was raised Catholic, but, I was taught to accept anyone, no matter what their race, creed, religion, atheism, or genetics," he said. "Of course, I will never accept racists, fascists, or any other asshole dictator."

"And, then we get to the thousand dollar question," Jordan said. "Exactly why are you three here? No offense, we could use all the help we can with the AF all around us, but why are you here in the first place?"

The three looked at each other before Hilda sighed.

"We were not sent here officially, perse," she said honestly. "Things up at the PLANTs had taken a turn for the worst."

"Operation Valkyrie, I presume?" Ron asked suddenly, and the three ZAFT pilots blinked in confusion. "What?" Mars asked.

"The July '44 bomb plot against Adolf Hitler," Ron said, rolling his eyes. "Did you even BOTHER studying military history?"

"Fuck you, buddy!"

"Sorry, you're not my type."

Hilda raised a hand to end the argument before it could result in gunshots. And since Ron's hand was reaching for his Browning HP, it was going that way. "We don't work for ZAFT directly," she said. "We support someone by the name of Lacus Clyne."

Ron fought hard not to scowl at the mention of her name. He believed Lacus was naive and stupid, and the many, many choices she made supported that belief. From stealing the _Eternal _to flying the Infinite Justice down to Earth during the battle for Orb in _Destiny_, there were at least a dozen ways she could've got herself killed. Still, he held his tongue.

Jordan however mentally smiled, knowing that they may have support from Lacus. Opposed to Ron's beliefs, Jordan saw Lacus as something of a Cosmic Era equivalent to Leia or Padme from Star Wars. Sure there were a few things she could've done differently, but in the end things turned out alright for the most part. Though he knew things would have to change now with their worlds together as one.

"I'm hoping that Miss Clyne is wishing to help us?" The General asked.

"We were sent simply to find out what was happening here on Earth," Hilda said, before she sighed/ "We didn't think it would be this complicated though… I mean… two worlds merging together? Are you shitting me?"

"Confused the hell out of us too," Jordan said, shaking his head. "But it's the only thing that makes sense… But right now, we just gotta learn to deal with it, and move on. And to kick the Atlantic Federation in the ass for everything they've done to us." He then crossed his arms over his chest. "But what will you do now?"

"Well," Hilda said, "There is no way we're going back up to space for a while… and either way, the Atlantic Federation and Earth Forces _are _our common enemy… and I doubt we'd be able to punch through the AF lines on our own. So it looks like we'll be sticking with you for a while… you look like you could use the help anyways. Hopefully we can get a message to the rest of the Clyne Faction, and get some extra help down here."

"And how do you propose we do that?" D.J. said. "Most of our communications are caput, and the majority of our forces are in the southern part of the Country. Not to mention the other nations are in total shit themselves."

"Like I said earlier, if we end their war, we can end this one soon after," Ron said. "And maybe try and reverse this whole trans-universal crap after that's done. They don't belong here any more then we belong there."

"That seems a little too simple." Hilda said.

"Sometimes, lady, the best solutions are the simple ones," Ron retorted.

"Sometimes, but not all the time," Jordan said. "Too much has changed for things to simply go back to normal _if _we found a way to do that. The best thing we can do now is learn to just deal with the fact our two worlds are merged permanently, and hope that we can find a way to live together." He sighed. "But right now, that's the least of our-"

Before he could finish however, a soldier ran into the room. "General, sir!" he shouted with a quick salute. "We have a problem!"

"Report, what is it?" The General asked.

"We're picking up a _lot _of AF Radio Chatter," The soldier said, "And scouts are reporting a large mobilization of AF Forces, we think they're about to attack!"

The others eyes widened as the General cursed. "Damn, I hoped we'd have more time..." he said. "Get the forces on alert, and man the defensive positions! Get everyone with two arms, two legs and a gun ready to fight, and get our Mobile Suits ready to prepare for the defenses!"

The soldier nodded with a salute before he ran back out the door.

"Well," Jordan said. "There goes the calm before the storm. we'd best get back to our machines and get ready for a fight." He turned to Hilda. "I suggest you head to your machines as well, ma'am," he said. "We're gonna need every experienced pilot we can round up to pull this defense off."

Hilda just smirked. "Hey, the AF is your enemy as it is ours," she said, as she and the other Tri-Stars stood up. "Lead the way."

* * *

**Meanwhile - Near Nevada/California Border**

* * *

Takeshi had put his Dagger into a run, not wanting to waste power with the vernier thrusters if he could help it - using the verniers might get him to the destination faster, but he figured he would need all the power he could get once he got into the battle.

As soon as they'd picked up the increased radio chatter, the Colonel in charge of the convoy had ordered them to double-time it, to try and get to the fight in time to make a difference. Takeshi was in the lead, outpacing the tanks and remaining aircraft that were following him in, while a few tanks and AA Vehicles remained behind to cover the Passenger and Lab Trucks, which were bringing up the rear.

'_I hope we can make it in time,_' he thought. '_The forces we're linking up with have probably managed to steal their own MS by now, too, but they'll need all the help they can get._'

"_Hey Takeshi! We got a problem!_" said one of the National Guardsmen in one of the tanks. "_I just got more chatter on the horn! It appears the AF is about to launch their attack any minute!_"

"Dammit!" Takeshi swore. "We need to get there now! Everyone, double-time it!" He then switched to the channel with the Colonel's personal tank. "Colonel, if you haven't gotten in touch with the forces we're linking up with recently, you might want to - let them know we're almost there!"

"_I already did!_" the colonel said. "_But I doubt the Atlantic Federation will be as patient! We are moving as fast as we can!_"

"Roger that!" Takeshi reported. "I'll see what I can do to get there faster. Here's hoping we make it in time!"

* * *

**Meanwhile - With Athrun & Sergeant Baker**

* * *

"Everyone down!" Sergeant Baker shouted as the vehicles he lead took cover behind what foliage they could find, and the Justice and four GuAIZ's also crouched down low to avoid being spotted. Soaring overhead were several squadrons of Atlantic Federation F-7D Spearhead Fighters, and Transport Planes soared overhead in formation.

"_Ho-ly shit…_" Collins muttered on their private comm they had set up. "_That is a LOT of planes…_"

Baker's eyes narrowed as he looked at them all. "They're heading towards the base…" he muttered. "We don't have much time left, we need to double time it!"

"_Hang on, three more contacts,_" Franz said. "_Wait… are those G-Weapons?_"

Athrun blinked in surprise as he looked up at the formation - and sure enough there were three machines which bore a strong resemblance to the original G-Weapons at Heliopolis, however they each appeared very different all the same. One was colored Teal blue with orange trimming with large cannons aligned across it. It was riding on top of a second G-Weapon which was shaped like a bird, colored black and red. And then there was a third, with a large backpack and armed with what looked like several cannons and a massive scythe blade in its hands. All of them keeping up with the formation of AF forces in the air.

"_I don't like this…_" Baker said on the radio. "_We need to double-time it back there! They're gonna need all the help they can get against these guys!_"

Athrun nodded as the AF aircraft finally passed over them with the Mobile Suits, before the American and ZAFT forces came out of their cover and continued their path back to base - much more quickly now.

* * *

**Meanwhile - Back at San Joaquin Pocket**

_**Archangel **_**Hangar**

* * *

Jordan quickly hopped into the cockpit of the Schwarze Calamity once again, as he put the Gundam through its startup sequence again. He was offered a Normal Suit from the _Archangel,_ however he saw little point in wearing one while in atmosphere, since they had none of the armored variants that could actually protect him from shrapnel. "Patriot, you ready to go?" he asked as the Calamity's eyes flashed to life.

"_Ready! Man! Murdock and his boys did a good job,_" he said, referring to the new paint job his 105 Dagger now had: dark tan limbs, green torso, shoulders, and head, with hints of dark brown and dark grey in some areas. "_It will help keeping my Dagger hidden more."_

"Good," Jordan said as the Mobile Suits in the _Archangel's_ hangar began to move, the first machines to be launched being the Freedom and the Strike. "Jessica, I want you and your team to keep a fair distance from the EA Forces," he said. "Your tanks are good, but they're useless if we end up fighting Phase-shift equipped mobile suits. Just keep your distance, and focus on fighting Daggers."

"_Got it!_" Jessica said. She turned to her team and nodded. "A_lright, everyone! Mount up! We're rolling out!_"

Her team nodded and hopped into their vehicles. Once on board, Jessica checked over all the systems and keyed the comm. "Tank 1, ready!"

"_Tank 2, good to go!_" Tony said.

"_Tank 3, all systems green!_" Steven added.

"_Tank 4 is set!_" Vanessa chimed.

"_Tank 5, all prepared,_" Ben remarked.

"_All tanks set, Jordan!_" Jessica reported. "_Just waiting for the order._"

Jordan nodded, as the Freedom launched from the _Archangel,_ along with the Strike Gundam armed with the Perfect Strike Pack. Next listed to launch was Jordan and D.J in their respective Mobile Suits, as he headed towards the port launch bay, while D.J entered the starboard one.

As the doors shut behind him, Jordan quickly selected the Aile Calamity Pack onto the Schwarze, which was very similar to the Strike's only configured to operate for the Calamity. It had the same loadout including two Beam Sabers, and a 57mm High Energy Beam Rifle. However Jordan took one of the spare Combine Shields from the IWSP Striker Pack, and added it on in exchange for the normal shield it had.

D.J. requested the full IWSP Pack, as it attached the 105 Dagger's hardpoints.

"_Schwarze Calamity and 105 Dagger, you're clear for take off!" _said Miriallia as Jordan gripped the controls, cracking his neck a bit.

'_Let's do this,_' he thought to himself before he took a deep breath "Jordan Tackett, Schwarze Calamity Gundam, Let's Rock and Roll!" He shouted as he launched out of the _Archangel,_ doing a short spin before he hit the thrusters of the Aile pack and quickly soared back into the air.

D.J Grinned a bit. "D.J Cobb, 105 Dagger, Moving out!" he shouted, as the 105 Dagger was next to launch up into the air, soon joining Jordan.

Following Jordan and D.J. into the catapult was Ron's more or less standard 105 Dagger, although he had opted to use the IWSP's Gatling shield rather than the standard one. In the cockpit, Ron downed a large amount of what appeared to be grape juice in a 2-liter Coke bottle before capping it. "_105 Dagger-_"

"Just send me out, damn it!" Ron shouted, as he wasn't one for fancy take-off lines. He had better things to worry about. The Dagger was launched out without too much warning, followed by Dylan and Tanner's 105s, which also carried an extra beam rifle.

The Daggers and Gundams took to the sky, as Cagalli in the Strike Rouge launched next, along with the _Archangel's_ complement of Astrays soon moved towards the defensive lines where the U.S Forces were holding their positions.

While they moved out, Jordan mentally went over their defense plan once again. They had only so many Mobile Suits in their arsenal, and even with Jessica's team of M1A3s, what was left of their armored force would not stand a chance against AF Mobile Suits. And what few aircraft they had wouldn't stand a chance against them either.

Which was why, once again, they were using the terrain to their advantage. Most of their tanks and armor were situated in areas of good cover where the AF Forces couldn't see them, as were their infantry units who were equipped with whatever anti-tank & armor weapons they have. They had situated numerous anti-air positions as well to keep their F-7D's under control, but they could only be so effective.

Meanwhile, as for what few aircraft they had, pilots were being being armed mostly with Anti-Ground weapons, as they are told to focus on providing ground support, and to avoid dogfights with the F-7D's or engaging enemy Mobile Suits. Just to act as quick strike aircraft. While they did have a small squadron of Fighters armed with Anti-Air missiles, they were more or less intended to distract the Spearheads.

As for their new Mobile Suits, while they had modified their Beam Sabers already, it was highly advised to all pilots to avoid engaging in Close Combat with enemy mobile suits, and to engage them at range, as many were taking similar positions to the tanks - staying in cover to take the Earth Forces MS out by ambushes.

Those pulling the most close-up fighting would be the Astrays, the Strike, Strike Rouge, the Freedom, The Tri-Star's and Jordan, D.J., and Ron's team. Since they had the most experience with piloting mobile suits above them all. The Freedom would be capable of destroying most of the AF's Mobile Suits, being far superior than them all, and with Mu piloting the Perfect Strike, and the more advance and experience Astrays and GiNN HM Type II's providing support will go a long way in making sure they hold their defenses.

And of course, there was the _Archangel,_ which was easily the most heavily armed and armored thing the U.S had going for them right now. With all of its firepower, they hope to use it to push the AF out of the pocket, long enough for their reinforcements to show up, and hit the AF From behind their lines.

"_All teams, engage and destroy,_" Ron said on the comm. "_We can't leave any of these mother - OH, SHIT._"

**BGM: 'Megalith Agnus Dei' Ace Combat 4 OST**

If there was something they hadn't learned to hear from Ron, it was a sense of fear in his voice. If anything, he was calm, albeit angry for reasons they didn't know. "_Three Mobile Suits, incoming!_" Ron shouted before he spoke on the private comm channel made for D.J., Jordan, and Ron to use. "_It's the fucking Druggies! Calamity, Forbidden, and Raider!_"

"_Shit! I didn't expect for us to face them this soon,_" D.J. growled. "_We were lucky to avoid those other two in the depot, but now these guys…_"

"_Worry about the Butterfly Effect later!_" Ron shouted "_We don't stand a chance in HELL against them; not with these things! Leave them to the Freedom! We'll keep the cannon fodder off Kira's ass!_"

Jordan nodded. "Right!" he said. "Let's hope Kira can handle them on his own… hopefully Mu will be able to keep at least one of them off him. If we _do _end up fighting one of them… just call for help from the others! Focus on the plan, people!"

After receiving acknowledgments from his friends the group continued their attack on the grunts, while the Freedom moved ahead and engaged the three GAT Gundams. Jordan himself went after a group of Strike Daggers who began to fire their beam rifles at him.

Ron, on the other hand, had a few other ideas. "Dylan, I want you to piss those fuckers off as much as you can," he said. "Tanner, give the Freedom support fire, but don't target the one with the scythe."

"_Why not?_"

"Geschmeidig Panzer: basically that son of a bitch can bend the beam so it can't hit." Ron answered. "The only thing that can actually hurt that fucker at range are _BSG_-caliber railgun rounds. And we don't have a Battlestar, do we?"

"_Good point,_" Tanner said. "_What about you?_"

"Oh, I'll be pulling a Packard and killing the guys Dylan pisses off." Ron said with a smirk.

Jordan began his own fight the the group of three Strike Daggers which were fast approaching the defenses. '_Here it goes,_' He thought as he drew out the Calamity's beam saber in his right hand, before raising the Combine Shield on his left arm, and fired away a few bursts from his 30mm Gatling Gun.

This got the attention of the Daggers as they turned and opened fire with their 57mm Beam Rifles, and Jordan maneuvered the Calamity around their shots, weaving through them as he fired bursts from his Gatling shield when he could, all while closing the distance.

One of the Strike Daggers decided to take it in Close, as he holstered its beam rifle and brought out its beam saber, and charged at the Schwarze Calamity. This caused Jordan to smirk a bit, as the EA pilot was in for a rude awakening about his beam sabers. He moved the Calamity to intercept, as their beam sabers approached one another. The EA pilot was obviously thinking their blades would just phase through one another, opening him up for a quick strike to the Calamity.

Imagine his surprise where their two Beams connected, and _locked _in place for a good few moments, before the superior repelling factor of the Calamity's beams actually forced the Strike Dagger's beam saber to short out, allowing him to just slice the Dagger across the middle, before jumping away as it exploded.

Jordan grinned as he held his Beam Saber in his machines hands, staring at the two remaining Strike Daggers, both pilots obviously stunned at what had just happened. "Yeah, didn't expect that, did ya?" He asked, "Bring it on!" he then charged forward once again, to finish off the two.

With D.J., he was facing a pair of Duel Daggers led by another 105 with a sword pack. He drew the anti-armor swords of the IWSP striker, as said pilot smirked.

"Okay, who dies first?" D.J. and the first to step up was the Sword 105 as it drew it's Schwert Gewehr and charged at him, "So predictable," he said as he blocked the large sword, the anti-beam coating on the blade preventing it from being cleaved in two. Then he used the second to strike out and eviscerate the enemy 105.

Meanwhile, Ron was doing exactly what he said he would be doing: using tactics Norris Packard used during his last battle with the 08th MS Team to tear the enemy units apart. Oh, Dylan got the lion's share of the danger, but Dylan prefered fighting in close quarters. Ron was more multirole, and the Aile Pack was a perfect balance of ranged and melee firepower. He would've preferred the Perfect Pack, but the _Archangel_ only had the one at that moment in time.

And, true to form, he was trying to end it as quickly as possible by aiming for the cockpit and killing the pilots. This might've been frowned upon by some, but Ron saw it as denying the enemy important resources: in this case, trained MS pilots. Cruel, but such was war.

Meanwhile, Jordan had made quick work of the last two Strike Daggers he fought, as he proceeded to move towards his next target: The 105 Daggers armed with Launcher Strikers. He knew they needed to be taken out before they could open up on their positions again, and cause havoc for their forces. He sped towards where he saw five of these such units moving into position, escorted by a handful of Strike Daggers.

"Jessica," he said on his radio, "focus fire at Three-Zero-One East, Launchers and Daggers. Draw some of them off."

"_Copy that! Firing at Three-Zero-One-East!_" Jessica said, and a few moments later a salvo of 130mm shells impacted the area where the Launcher Daggers were moving, followed by another salvo of 90mm shells which managed to knock out one of the launchers. Before the Strike Daggers could move to intercept Jessica's tanks, they were already hauling ass out of there under cover of the trees.

Using the momentary distraction to his advantage, Jordan accelerated forward as he fired a long stream of 30mm rounds at the next Launcher Dagger, his rounds hitting the torso segment, ripping through the armor before the machine fell down, its pilot likely dead. Jordan then ignited the Combine Shield's Beam Boomerang, as he then tossed it at the third Dagger, the boomerang spinning forward, and slicing in half its Agni Cannon while it was in the middle of deploying it, and the boomerang turned around and returned to Jordan's grasp.

Before he could put the boomerang away, two of the remaining Strike Daggers tried to jump him from behind, however Jordan quickly responded using the Calamity's higher reaction time to spin around, as he intercepted the first Strike Dagger's beam saber with his shield, and the second he caught using the beam of his Beam Boomerang. The same results as before happened, as the second Dagger's beam saber shorted out, and Jordan stabbed him in the head of his Mobile Suit with the Boomerang, trailing it down as he sliced the machine in half down the middle. He then shoved the next dagger he held with his Shield away, before he tossed the boomerang towards it, not bothering to spin it to ensure the boomerang returned as it hit the area where the cockpit should of been.

His sensors went off, as he leaped the Schwarze Calamity back into the air, narrowly avoiding a salvo of 120mm Rounds and Gun Launcher shots from the remaining two Launcher Daggers, the first one raising its Agni as it tried to get a good lock on him. Rather than give him an easy Target, Jordan sped around, moving to flank the Daggers, using his superior speed to his advantage. The Launcher Dagger fired a few shots at him, but Jordan managed to avoid being hit.

Staying low to the ground, Jordan once again pulled out his 30mm Gatling shield, and opened fire at the second to last Launcher Dagger, his shots blasting off its head and right shoulder, therefore taking out its Weapons Pod, head vulcans, and its ability to use its own Agni Cannon. However the pilot was still stubborn as he used his remaining arm to draw out an ES01 Beam Saber, and charged at him.

However, Jordan just ducked his machine, slashing his own beam saber through his left arm effectively removing it, before he reached out, grabbed the second ES01 Beam Saber the Dagger still had attached to its hip armor, igniting it, and tossing it at the last Dagger, hitting it right in the Agni Cannon, causing the weapon to explode taking its left arm with it, before speeding forwards and removing its right arm as well.

With all of the launchers either destroyed or disarmed, leaving only the two remaining heavily damaged Daggers unable to fight, flew up into the air. "That should give you an excuse," he said to the EA pilots, "Now go home!" And with that he flew away, looking for his next set of targets.

"Launcher Daggers taken care of," he said. "They won't be bombarding us for a while now."

"_Took care of a Sword Dagger and two Duel Daggers,_"said Patriot. "_Now heading for another group._"

"I don't think those Daggers like the way Dylan and I are screwing with - FUCK!" That caused Drew to look over and spot the Raider fly over toward Ron's Aile Dagger, guns blazing. The MP MS fired its' beam rifle into the building it was standing on, collapsing it and sending Ron's machine downwards and out of the Raider's attacking arc. "Fucking Christ! I'm pinned! A little help would be nice!"

The Raider moved to attack once more, but before it could attack a voice cried out over loudspeakers, "_**WAIT!**_"

**BGM: Machine Robo: Revenge of Chronos OST "Emissary of the Sky"**

Literally everyone on the battlefield stopped what they were doing and swiveled to the source of the voice, where a lone Mobile Suit stood, cloaked in the shadow of trees that towered above it.

"_In this world,_" the voice said, "_those soldiers who fight under the command of genocidal racists, never questioning their orders no matter what civilian casualties occur as a result… those soldiers are called 'Fools'._"

An AF Dagger Pilot, who had slightly more brains than the rest of his fellows (or at least enough to know that the mysterious voice was referring to them) shouted in reply, "_Who the hell are you, calling us fools?!_"

"_**YOU DO NOT DESERVE TO KNOW MY NAME!**_" the voice replied, seconds before the Mobile Suit leapt out of the shadows, revealing itself to be a '105' Dagger with the Aile and Sword Packs somehow mounted at the same time as it drew its Schwert Gewehr, and threw its Beam Boomerang at the Raider.

In the Aile Dagger's cockpit, Ron was facepalming. "Why do all the people that manage to hijack an MS do over dramatic speeches instead of JUST SHOOTING THEM?!" he asked. Maybe it was just him, but he liked practicality. And that guy had the element of surprise, so he could've killed the Raider. But NO, he had to make a speech instead. Still, that guy saved his life, and that was something he wasn't complaining about.

Off to the side, a few Strike Daggers were poking around in the woods to try and find whoever had shot at them. One of the pilots stuck his machine's head into the brush, only to come face-to-face with a pair of 90mm cannons aimed directly at his machine's head, the 130mm cannon of a tank aimed right at the torso. The pilot blanched as the guns roared, sending his machine flying back from the close impact before an explosion resonated as the shells detonated.

The tanks bailed out of there as fast as they could go, relying solely on their speed and the terrain to give them cover.

"_Nice shot!_" Tony said over the comm.

Steven grimaced. "Maybe a little too close for comfort though," he said.

"_Heads up! Got more Strike Daggers firing close to our positions!_" Vanessa warned.

"_All tanks are to split up and launch hit and run attacks from the depths of the woods as far back as your main guns will allow you to fire from! Max range is needed, and stay in the woods unless you have no choice but to go out and cause chaos!_" Jessica ordered.

"_Right!_" they all said.

Within minutes the tanks split up, vanishing in every which way possible while staying hidden.

Meanwhile, Jordan flew over the battlefield as he watched as the long awaited reinforcements from Takeshi's group finally arrived, as tanks, IFV's, APC's and infantry struck the AF's rear lines, while Takeshi battled it out with enemy Mobile Suits. '_It's about time you got here, Takeshi,_' he thought with a smirk. '_Nice entrance, though._'

He began to make his way forward, but suddenly he felt… something, jolt in his head, followed by his warning alarms going off. "SHIT!" He shouted as he pulled back on the controls, as the Schwarze Calamity stopped right before a series of missiles, a beam and a Rail gun shot nearly hit him. He traced down the source, and groaned as he saw a very familiar looking Long Dagger in Fortresta Armor.

"You again…" he muttered. "How the hell did they manage to fix you so fast?"

Obviously, the enemy pilot didn't answer, as the enemy simply flared their thrusters and ascended to engage him, firing his beam rifle all the way up. Jordan rose his shield to block some of the shots, while dodging the others.

"Alright, buddy…" Jordan muttered, "You want a rematch? I'll give you a fucking rematch!"

In a another area, D.J. dropped another Strike Dagger, which was missing its head and legs.

However, before he can move onto another group, his alarm alerted him and he jumped out of the way as a beam like the Launcher Striker streaked past.

"Whoa shit!" he shouted, and he turned and his eyes widened as he saw what fired the beam launcher. "Oh fucking great, a Sword Calamity!"

Indeed, standing before D.J. was the all too familiar Calamity-type Gundam, very much like Jordan's recently acquired Schwarze Calamity, but very different considering it was colored in a blue, yellow, black and color scheme, only causing D.J to groan once again.

"Oh shit..." he muttered. "Please don't be..." He zoomed in on the shoulder of the machine, and sure enough, there was that all too familiar Sakura Burst symbol that the and Jordan saw just a day prior. "Rena… shit..."

In the cockpit of the Sword Calamity, Rena looked at the 105 Dagger in it's new paint job, and immediately felt it was the same Dagger she fought before back at the depot. She grinned, and knew that no plane was gonna save this guy's ass.

"Okay pal, let's see if you improved, shall we?" she said as she readied her swords.

Meanwhile, Ron had gotten out of the building he had collapsed. And he was PISSED. Unfortunately, this was a problem. That bottle Ron had been drinking out of? It had ground up stimulants in it. He hadn't actually slept since the whole debacle began. And with the added adrenaline in his system, he had basically turned into a berserker.

And a few Daggers that thought he'd be an easy kill would be the berserker's first victims. The Aile Dagger charged toward them, the Gatling shield firing all the while. "What the fuck?!" The Pilot shouted, "This guy's in-" The pilot never finished his sentence as the bullets tore the torso apart, killing him in a brutal, if quick, fashion.

"_Fuck! Stay behind the shields!_" The Second Pilot shouted "_Those bullets can't kill us-_" Ron drew a beam saber to counter that argument prior to hitting the closest Dagger in the head with the side of his shield before impaling the cockpit with the beam saber.

"_Fall back!_" The third pilot shouted, as two beam rifle rounds struck near Ron's Aile Dagger, getting the angry man's attention. It was another Aile Dagger, but the blue paint had been replaced with a more practical brown.

"_I'll take this son of a bitch on!_" A feminine voice called out, coming from the newcomer. And that only made Ron angrier. That voice reminded him of one of his brother's more annoying girlfriends. Wasn't her, but that didn't matter.

Meanwhile, as Ron's next battle began, Jordan's battle with the Long Dagger continued as he used up the last of his Gatling Shield's ammo, blasting away the shoulder mounted Railgun of the Long Dagger. This did not bode well with the enemy pilot, as he once again charged forward, a beam saber in one hand, and a shield in the other.

Jordan raised his arm for a downward swipe, however the Long Dagger rose his shield to deflect - having already learned his lesson about the Schwarze Calamity's improved Beam Sabers as he now avoided clashing them. With his other hand he tried to stab his own beam saber into the Calamity, only for Jordan to raise his own shield to block the attack, however in the process of this the Long Dagger sliced in half the 30mm Gun barrels, however it didn't matter since it was out of ammo.

"Screw you!" Jordan shouted as he shoved the Calamity forward into the Long Dagger, forcing it off balance before he swung his beam saber again, which cleaved through the Dagger's right shoulder where the missile launcher resided. While he was unable to get a clean cut, he sliced through the missile launcher itself, causing an explosion which heavily damaged the rest of the machine's Fortresta armor, and its head unit.

Apparently, that attack must of been enough for the pilot - with most of his weapons gone, he couldn't fight much more. The Long Dagger jumped up into the air, as it began to fall back. "_Next time, you won't be so lucky!_" a male voice shouted on the comm, causing Jordan to blink as the Long Dagger retreated.

Takeshi was thoroughly enjoying himself - before the merge, he'd been a closet adrenaline junkie who got his rush through video games, but now? Now it seemed that he'd gone into full-blown combat-fueled adrenaline junkie mode, a large grin on his face as he cleaved through Daggers one after another. He was also mentally smirking at how well his Rom Stoll moment had gone, though like with the Kamina moment earlier, it didn't feel… well, it didn't resonate with him as truly matching him. He'd need to keep switching it up with each battle until he found out which character he meshed with the most.

Jessica's tank unit crept up on a few other Strike Daggers and opened fire, sending shells rocketing down the battlefield until they hit, blowing a few Daggers up and letting one fall to the ground with both arms and a leg missing. The tanks then split up, heading deeper into the woods before heading back and circling towards the rest of the fighting. "_Jorn, need any help?_" she called over the comm.

"Nah, just finishing up here," Jordan said as he sliced through another Strike Dagger, before drawing out his Beam Rifle and firing a few shots at incoming Linear Tanks. "Got a sit-rep?"

"_The General says we're holding our ground so far,_" Jessica said. "_We've only lost a few Mobile Suits, and the EA forces are in trouble with Takeshi's team hitting them from behind. He caught them by surprise it seems. But the EA still aren't falling back - and Kira is still fighting the Extendeds._"

Jordan frowned a bit as he looked up in the sky, and saw - sure enough - Kira was still in the Freedom, fighting the Raider, Calamity, and Forbidden. He took a glance at his machine's power - he was nearing the yellow zone with nearly 57% power now, so he still had some time before he had to return to the _Archangel _to recharge. He felt like he should help Kira… but those were Extendeds. They were a very large step above what he's been fighting so far. He did not want to get himself killed.

However, at the same time he didn't want to get _Kira_ killed, since he is one of the most vital people in the Cosmic Era, and losing him - and the Freedom - would be very very bad. Also… part of him just really wanted to see how he'd do against an Extended pilot, especially to see how well the Schwarze Calamity did against the original Calamity.

After a moment to weigh his options, he mentally groaned. '_This is fucking stupid,_' he thought, before he accelerated upwards towards the sky to help Kira in his fight.

Kira in the Freedom was fighting against the three new Gundams. He had to admit, these models were MORE superior than the ones built at Heliopolis. If their weapons and performance were anything to go by. The fact that he was outnumbered three to one was not helping either, as the three Gundams continued to try and outflank him.

Kira fired a blast from his Balaena Plasma Beam Cannons at the Forbidden, only for his shots to be reflected by its Geschmeidig Panzer shield as the beams bended around, and then it returned fire with its own Eckzahn 88mm Railguns, forcing Kira to dodge. However suddenly the Calamity showed up at Kira's flank, riding the Raider, its Plasma-Sabot bazooka raised. "_DIE!_" the pilot shouted, as he began to pull the trigger.

However, suddenly, a new voice shouted, "_Think fast, bucko!_" Causing the Calamity to look down, just as the Schwarze Calamity rammed itself into it, knocking it off the Raider as it fell to the ground.

"_WHAT THE HELL!?_" shouted the Calamity pilot as the Gundam fell to the ground.

"_You okay, Kira?" _said Jordan and Kira nodded.

"Yeah, thanks to you," the Freedom pilot said.

The second generation GAT series Mobile Suits were NOT happy with that, and their day was about to get worse as Tanner's Launcher Dagger managed to actually hit the Raider, knocking it out of the fight as it was too badly damaged to continue the battle. "Holy shit!" he shouted. "I did it! Ron, do you read? I hit the bird one!"

The unfortunate part was the his best friend wasn't even listening. He was too pissed off and busy with the 'ace' Aile Dagger pilot to do anything. "Fucking Christ!" The pilot shouted "How the hell is he still fighting me?! Is he a goddamn Coordinator or something?!"

She lashed out with a saber, but Ron deflected with the shield and hacked off the saber arm, followed by dumping a few dozen gatling rounds into the unit's legs, sending it crashing to the ground. With that over, he aimed at the cockpit, but while the gatling spun, it didn't fire. Ron was out of ammo. But he kept the weapon pointed at the Dagger.

Jessica's tanks came charging out into the battle, darting and weaving around amidst the fighting. Several Strike Daggers were caught off guard by this as the tanks opened up with their guns and took out three Daggers with the 130mm cannons. As one of the Daggers tried to grab one of them, the tanks split up and one of them parked directly in front of the Dagger and it tripped, falling flat on its torso. The tank backed up and the five vehicles engaged their smoke, vanishing back into the woods.

"_Dammit! Who did that?!_" the pilot of the tripped Dagger yelled over the comm as he got his machine to its feet.

He didn't last long as Dylan's Sword Dagger bisected the machine. "_Hey, uh, Titanic, right?_" Dylan said, "_Can you go check on Ron? That's not normal for him to do that. He usually just kills them, not stands over them like some gloating villain._"

Jessica replied in a flash. "_On it!_" she said. She contacted her friends first. "_Guys, keep 'em off my ass!_"

She turned her tank around and charged out of the forest back into the fray. She dodged and weaved around the fighting, her eyes narrowed as she spotted Ron's machine. She sped through the fray, her teammates backing her up every step of the way. "_Ron!_" she called over the comm. "_Ron! Goddammit, Ron! Answer me!_"

She got no answer.

The Dagger pilot got out of her cockpit, but quickly had a M2 .50 caliber machine gun pointed at her for her trouble. "Aw, fuck. Those idiots with the antiques?"

"Hey!" Jessica yelled. She swerved her tank to the left as the pilot opened up. She barely dodged it. "That was way too close…" she murmured. The other tanks engaged a smokescreen, further confusing the enemy. Jessica wasted no time trying to contact Ron once more.

"Ron! Answer me!" she called.

Still no answer. Growling, she contacted her friends. "Guys, keep this Dagger pilot off my ass! I'm gonna see what's up with Ron!"

"_Got it!_" her friends said.

Without even a second's hesitation, she brought her tank up close to Ron's Dagger and scrambled out of the hatch, but left the engine running for evacuation. She scrambled up the leg of the machine like a monkey, relying on climbing instincts long forgotten since her childhood days. She reached the top of the torso in less than fifteen minutes. She spotted the latch for the cockpit hatch and popped it open.

She peered inside and stared at Ron lying slumped over in the seat. "Dammit!" she muttered. She got into the cockpit and undid the straps, hoisting the large Canadian over her back. She was now running on adrenaline, so she relied on that to help her get the big Canadian out of the cockpit and down to her tank. Once she was back on the ground, she lugged him over to the vehicle and laid him inside before scrambling back in and closing the hatch as a barrage of machinegun fire barely hit her. She gunned the engine and shifted into reverse before heading back out.

"Hey! This is Titanic X here!" she said to the man who had contacted her initially. "I found Ron! He's unconscious and I'm bailing him outta here!"

"_Fuck!_" Dylan shouted. "_I'll get his Mobile Suit: no sense in leaving it behind for the Alliance, right?_" Dylan's Sword Dagger broke into a dead run, and he fired a burst of 40mm cannon shells at the Dagger pilot, who ducked back into her cockpit.

"Fuck!" she cursed. "Outgunned and out of ammo!" Only one real option. Surrender. She threw her useless weapon away before getting out, hands raised. "Don't shoot! I surrender!"

"You what?!"

"You heard me! I surrender!"

Dylan sighed. "Titanic, can you send a tank to pick her up?" he asked. "I'll get the Dagger. We just got our first POW."

"_Got it! Steven, head over there. We got ourselves a POW,_" Jessica said.

"_Roger! On my way!_" Steven replied. His tank spun around and darted through the battle, finally coming to a stop in front of the woman. He popped the hatch and poked his head out. "All right, lady. Get in. But no funny stuff!" he said.

She didn't bother resisting. Still, they kept a gun pointed at her at all times as she climbed onto the tank.

Steven nodded and slammed the hatch down as he tore off, the woman clinging to the guns as he barreled back towards allied lines.

Meanwhile, back with Jordan and Kira, they flew back to back as they now faced just the Forbidden and Calamity, which were continuing to fly circles around them, as the two pilots fired at opportunity, but the Extended pilots would either dodge or block with their shields.

"_Jordan, how's your power?_" Kira asked.

Jordan sighed as he looked at the power indication, which was beginning to reach the red zone "Shit… you don't wanna know," he said. "Getting into the 30's… I'm gonna have to pull out soon."

"_Fall back,_" Kira said. "_There's only two of them now._"

"Yeah, but they're still both aces," Jordan said. "One's gone, but you still gotta fight these two goons. Freedom is pretty damn good, but I don't know how you'll do against these guys on your own."

"_Don't worry about me, you just get out of here and recharge!_" Kira replied.

However, before Jordan could move, suddenly the Calamity made its move as it jumped forward, swinging its shield arm like a club, forcing Jordan to raise his own shield to block. "Fuck!" he shouted.

"_I'm gonna get you, you damn copycat!_" Came the voice of the Calamity's pilot - Orga Sabnak - through the radio, causing Jordan to blink.

"Copycat?" he asked. "The fuck are you talking about? Your IFF says you're the X131 Calamity. Mine's the X132 Schwarze Calamity! Completely different!"

"_It's still a fucking Calamity!_" Orga shouted as he shoved Jordan's machine back, separating him from Kira, leaving Clotho in the Forbidden to deal with him.

"Ah, but _mine _is better. Yours is older," Jordan said smirking as he shoved the Calamity back. "Hence why it's one number higher. Plus, mine can actually fly - yours just hovers and has no close range weapons."

"_Just shut up!_" the Extended pilot shouted, as he fired his Schlag Beam Cannons at the Schwarze, but Jordan jumped back into the air, avoiding the blasts. However Jordan looked at his power readings, and winced as he saw he was already hitting 20%.

"Kira, I'm pulling out!" he called out in warning as he began heading back towards the _Archangel_. "Just hang in there!"

Kira nodded and turned back as the two remaining Extendeds attacked him again.

Meanwhile, with D.J., said pilot was not having a good time as he was fighting Rena. Which the female Ace was making it difficult for him.

"Dammit! This fucking sucks!" he shouted as he raised his shield to block a swing from her Anti-Ship Swords. D.J. drew out his own Beam Saber, attempting to cancel out her own, but she jumped away as he swung - obviously having heard of what the Beam Sabers from the US Mobile Suits do against theirs.

"SHIT!" he shouted. "So much for that idea."

He then put the Beam Saber and took his swords back out.

"Okay little Sakura, if that's how you want to play…" He then charged his 105 forward, while Rena's Sword Calamity waited for him, swords at the ready.

Across the battlefield, the US Forces and their new allies from the _Archangel_ and ZAFT were fighting the OMNI Enforcers, with great success. Mu piloted his Perfect Strike against Strike Daggers, destroying them with superior firepower, the Tri-Stars sped across the lines with their GiNN's, decimating 105 Daggers, Cagalli lead the Orb pilots with her Strike Rogue and their Astray's as they supported the US Armor and Mobile Suits, bombarding enemy lines, and the _Archangel _herself was barraging the EA Forces with its beam cannons and missiles, destroying the EA's forces at long range.

This was the sight seen by Athrun, the Collins Team, and Sergeant Bakers forces as they moved over a hill, and watched the battle play out, many of the US soldiers having wide eyes at the sight.

"Holy shit!"

"We gotta get through THAT!?"

"Some of those suits have MARPAT Camo, that means our guys captured some of those things."

These were some of the conversation that Athrun heard on the radio as he looked at the battlefield in front of him. However, he then spotted something that caught his attention the most. In the air, was the ZGMF-X10A Freedom, fighting against two of the G-Weapons they had spotted earlier.

"The Freedom…" he muttered as his eyes widened. "Kira!"

He watched as the stolen ZAFT Gundam dodged a few beam blasts, before the scythe wielding one attempted to slice it down the middle, only for the Freedom to dodge and kick it away. Athrun gritted his teeth, as he remembered what happened since January, since the attack on Heliopolis, to their clashes in space, too their battle on earth…

…to Kira killing Nicol, and him nearly killing Kira in return for revenge...

He was conflicted on what to do… either to help his once best friend, or follow the orders that his father gave him. He thought about what Lacus said, back at the PLANT's before he left…

"_It's tough, isn't it, kid?_" said Wil from his GuAIZ, breaking him out of his thoughts.

"What?" he said.

"_You're conflicted whether you should help your friend or not,_" he said, causing Athrun's eyes to widen.

"How did yo… wait, Lacus," he said, and he heard Wil chuckle.

"_Yup, me and the rest of the team are Clyne supporters,_" he said. "_Though we kept our mouths shut about that. We were told what to expect…_" Wil sighed. "_I know what you're going through, Athrun… I was in the same position as you were a year ago._"

Athrn looked at him in surprise. "What do you mean?" He asked.

"_I had a friend… a Natural, lived on earth,_" Wil said. "_He was a good friend… we knew each other as kids, but when my family left the AF, we never saw each other again… until the war began… on the battlefield…_" He let out a long sigh. "_He was… different. Brainwashed with Blue Cosmos propaganda… I could barely believe he was the same kid I knew as a child, but..._"

Athrun was stunned by this info and by the way he didn't finish, it ended badly.

"_Do me a favor, Athrun. Don't make the same mistake me and my friend made,_" Will said. "_You still have a chance to make some amends… I don't._"

Meanwhile, Kira continued to fight with the two Earth Forces G-Weapons, as the two tried to double-team him. The Forbidden swung its Scythe at the Freedom, which he intercepted with his shield before he kicked him away. But the Forbidden recovered quickly as it began firing its Eckzahn Railguns at the Freedom, forcing Kira to take evasive maneuvers. In the cockpit of the Forbidden Shani growled. "Orga! Get him!" He shouted.

"_Eat This!_" Orga shouted, while the Freedom's back was turned, firing his Scylla Multi-phase energy cannon at the Freedom, the beam fast approached as Kira noticed it, beginning to turn around but not fast enough to intercept.

Just moments before the beam hit however, the ZGMF-X09A Justice appeared, raising its shield to take the bulk of the blast, before spinning around and firing a shot from his beam rifle at the Calamity and Forbidden, not hitting either of them, but catching them off guard. "_WHAT?_"

Kira looked looked and saw the Justice, his eyes widening a bit seeing a bit of a resemblance from the Aegis, but the main difference was the winged backpack.

His thoughts were interrupted by the voice of the pilot, a voice he recognized all too well.

"_This is ZAFT Special Forces Agent Athrun Zala." _ Athrun said, causing Kira's eyes to widen further "_Can you hear me, Freedom? Kira Yamato I presume._"

"Athrun..." He muttered, before the Calamity and Forbidden got their act together, and continued their attack on the new Mobile Suit. The Justice blocked an attack from the Raider, as their shields collided before the Justice forced it back, drawing its double-bladed beam saber and charged at it.

Kira, narrowing his eyes, drew his own beam saber as he charged back into the battle. "What's the big idea?" he demanded. "Is ZAFT going to stick its nose into this battle?"

It was quiet for a moment, as Kira blocked a strike from the Forbidden's scythe, as the Justice slammed its fist into the Calamity's face. Athrun then spoke again.

"_That's half true, since we need to find out what the hell is going on here in the AF. But… this fight, right now, is of my own will." _Athrun said.

Kira's eyes widened again as the Justice continued to fight. "Athrun..." he muttered, as the Calamity fired its Ram Cannon at the Gundam, only for Athrun to dodge them as he moved forward. Meanwhile, Kira, knowing to focus on the battle, fired his beam rifle at the Forbidden, but his shots were deflected by its Geschmeidig Panzer as the fight continued.

Around the battlefield however, the sudden arrival of the Justice caught many of the forces - both the Atlantic Federation and US Army - by surprise as they looked up, watching as the Calamity and Forbidden now fought the Freedom and Justice.

With D.J. and Rena, they too stopped as they saw the battle up in the sky. The former's eyes widened as he saw the Justice.

'_Oh shit, Athrun is here,_'he thought, as he was not expecting Kira's best friend to show up as well.

Just launching from the _Archangel _was Jordan, now in a fully recharged Schwarze Calamity, who looked up and saw the Justice and Freedom, his eyes wide with surprise. '_The Justice…_' he thought. '_Athrun's here already?_'

At that moment his sensors went off again, drawing his attention too another force of US Soldiers and, surprisingly, ZGMF-600 GuAIZ's that were attacking the rear lines of the OMNI Enforcers alongside Takeshi's group, adding even more pressure to the enemy's offensive lines.

"Ho-ly shit." he said, and then grinned a bit. '_Looks like the odds on the home team just went up._'

* * *

_**Patriot-112:**__** And that's a wrap! Looks like things are about to get more... intense.**_

**Ron the True Fan: Sucks to be OMNI Enforcer. And, in a way, us. By the way, people, don't do drugs: otherwise, you'll end up like I did in this chapter.**

**Takeshi Yamato: And I do another Expy Moment! However, I will not be expying Kamina and Rom Stoll on a regular basis. I do have a character in mind to have as my 'Expy Style' for the rest of this story, but I won't say who it is at the moment. I will give you a clue, however: CHESTOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!**

**117Jorn: He's not the only one who's getting Expy'd… I've got my own ideas… hehehehehe…**

**Ron the True Fan: We are all screwed. Ja ne, everyone.**

**Patriot-112: Yup, see ya later peeps!**


	4. Chapter 3

**Patriot-112: Here we are folks! Another chapter from your favorite group of Gundam Fans. The others are busy right, so I'm making this intro myself. Also, there will be a very gruesome at the end of this chapter, which is meant to introduce a very... sadistic original character. **

**Anyway, besides that, let's continue! **

* * *

_Chapter 4: Dancing with Angels Part 2_

* * *

**May 18th, 2014 AD/ CE 71**

**Alaska Coastline**

* * *

Tom grinned as he looked out over the ocean as a modified, massive ice breaker approached their position. When the fighting began the underground Canadian Military had appropriated the Coast Guard Vessel and fashioned it into a Battleship reinforce their lagging fleet. "_Captain Johnston, this is Captain Brown, I hear you have a bit of a flat tire._"

Tom chuckled as he held his radio up. "Something like that Captain, mind giving us a bit of a tow?" he asked.

"_Not a problem, sending out some of my boys with chains,_" Brown informed as several inflatable boats left the Modified Icebreaker; heading for the beached carrier. "_So we now got a carrier for use, huh, it'll be good to get on the offensive again._"

"Tell me about it, what's the latest intel?" Tom asked as the soldiers got to work chaining up the carrier to be towed.

"_Well, we got a rather sizable EA fleet heading for that new chain of islands that appeared,_" Brown reported. "_We are also are getting reports of a group of Americans that joined forces with them. One other report is saying that the leader of the refugee's from Edmonton that you're interested in is there as well._"

"Really?" Tom asked, his eyebrow raising. "Any news on how the fighting is going?"

"_Rather well, considering. They seem to be fighting them off with some assistance._" Tom had an idea about who was assisting, that was for sure. It was either ZAFT or the _Archangel_. His bets were on the latter.

"I think we can tip the odds even further against the EA," Tom informed, looking over to their newly acquired Carrier. "Corporal, bring me the good captain we captured and have communications get ahold of the General, we've got some scheming to do."

* * *

**Meanwhile - San Joaquin Pocket**

**California, United States**

* * *

"YEEEHAW!" Jordan shouted as he sped across the battlefield in the now fully charged Schwarze Calamity, as he fired his beam rifle at a duo of Strike Daggers that jumped up at him, only to be gunned down before he spun around, and sliced a 105 Dagger in half. "This is what I was born to do!"

The battle was going even better than expected. With the arrival of Takeshi's group, along with the surprise arrival of the extra US Troops, and their ZAFT escorts lead by the Justice, the EA forces were soon finding themselves in a much harder fight than they anticipated. While Kira and Athrun fought off the Extendeds, and Patriot was holding off Rena, that left just the grunts to him and the others.

"Okay, then…" he said, he said gripping the controls. "Time to deliver the pain!"

With that, he went toward a group of four Strike Daggers lead by a Duel Dagger. The first to spot him was one of the Strike Daggers, which turned around and drew its beam rifle out, opening fire. However Jordan just brought up his shield and blocked the attack as he sped forward, firing his own beam rifle at a second Strike Dagger that was moving too slow, and got blown to pieces.

He then put away his rifle before drawing his beam saber once again as he approached the first Strike Dagger as he sliced off the unit's left arm, which was holding the beam rifle in it. However the Strike Dagger then dropped the shield in its right arm, drawing out its ES01 Beam Saber before charging at Jordan, only to be bashed away by Jordan's shield as he sliced off its second arm. It fired its 75mm head vulcan but Jordan kicked him to the ground.

"Stay down!" he growled out before he jumped into the air, avoiding the fire from the two remaining Strike Daggers and Duel Dagger, and landing behind the first Dagger. He grabbed it by the head as he ripped off the Beam Saber on its back, activating it before he tossed it at the second Strike Dagger, hitting it in the head and causing it to fall backwards. Without a main Camera, the Dagger retreated.

He then crushed the Dagger's head with the Schwarze's hands, and swinging his own beam saber, he sliced off the machine's right arm - taking the beam rifle with it. The second dagger retreated, leaving just the Duel Dagger to contend with as it fired off its Railgun at him. Jordan ducked under the attack before he shot the thrusters forward, tackling the Duel Dagger to the ground.

"_You're good,_" a voice on the Radio said, causing Jordan to blink in surprise that it was coming from the Duel Dagger, and that it was somewhat of a Russian accent. "_I must ask, how long have you been piloting Mobile Suits?_"

Jordan chuckled a bit. "Would you believe me if I said this is only my second mission in this thing?" he said, before he grunted a bit as the Duel Dagger kicked him in the torso a few good times. Though the Trans-Phase armor held of course, it still rattled the inside of the cockpit.

Jordan in return punched the Duel Dagger in the face a few good times, knocking the machine away. The Duel dagger fired its missiles at him, but Jordan gunned them down with the Schwarze's CIWS vulcans. "_Impossible,_" the Russian pilot said. "_You're piloting that machine like you've known it all your life!_"

"I'm just lucky that way, I suppose," Jordan said as he brought out his beam saber once again.

"_Hmm… maybe…_" the Russian said, as he drew his own Beam Saber in return. "_You are good… but you can't possibly hope to stand against the entire Atlantic Federation, let along the entire Earth Alliance. Even if we fail this time… we will be back, larger than ever._"

Jordan was silent for a moment, before he smiled a bit. Not knowing that he and the Russian were on an open channel, he spoke. "Well, you know what I say to that?" he asked. "I say the Earth Forces can go Dance with the Angels!"

With that said, Jordan charged, his Beam Saber raised just as the Duel Dagger charged towards him. The two charged before they both swung, and suddenly the two machines were standing behind one another, both having completed their swings, now in a hunched position.

Then, the Duel Dagger's right arm fell off and exploded, and a chunk of the Aile pack of the Calamity fell off.

"_Damn,_" the Russian growled, Jordan hearing the sounds of warning alarms on the other side. "_Looks like I underestimated you… but next time you won't be so lucky, boy… _" The Duel Dagger jumped away. "_Either way… I look forward to our next fight, young man!_"

Jordan sighed as he looked around and saw the majority of the EAF beginning to fall back.

"It looks like they had enough," he said to himself, before thinking '_But they'll be back._'

With D.J., he was busy still fighting Rena, as she attempted to slice him down the middle with one of her swords, but the EA Ace was surprise when the 105 Dagger lifted it's arms in an x-block, stopping the sword swing before he grabbed the Sword Calamity's arm and brought it down on its knee, breaking the arm at the elbow.

"GODDAMMIT!" Rena shouted, now more than pissed, especially as the 105 Dagger then shoved her away, forcing her to try and regain her balance.

"_Lieutenant Imelia!_" a voice called out, as she saw two Strike Daggers arrive, firing at the 105 Dagger, forcing it to jump back. "_We need to fall back! Command is issuing a retreat while we still can!_"

Rena growled a bit as she stood the Sword Calamity back up, staring at the 105 Dagger that once again managed to escape her. "We'll meet again..." She said, before she jumped the Calamity up, following her comrades in their retreat.

Jessica's eyes widened as she heard that over the radio. "You heard her, guys! They're gonna fall back! We need to press this home!" she shouted.

"_On it!_" the team cried.

Steven, Vanessa, Tony, and Ben sped out from the trees as did Jessica. The five tanks met up and formed a V formation as they opened fire from their guns to press home the retreat option.

Dylan took down another Dagger as it attempted to retreat, but left his back open to an attack by another one, this one having deployed its' two beam sabers. Luckily for Dylan, Ron had long since hammered watching their teammates' backs into their heads, and the saber-wielding Dagger was blasted by Tanner's Launcher Dagger. "You owe me for that, Dylan!" A railgun round shot past the Launcher Dagger's head, and Dylan eyed the clearly pissed off Forbidden, which was firing at Tanner's machine. Beams were useless, as Ron had told them. Dylan then hatched a plan involving those beam boomerangs: take out those railguns at range. "Hey, asshat!" He holstered the anti-ship sword and pulled out both boomerangs. "Knock-knock, asshole!" The Sword Dagger swung the boomerangs at the Forbidden, actually managing to hit and damage the railguns to the point where they couldn't be used. That also made the beam-bending Hresvelgr plasma cannon useless, as while it could be fired, hitting a moving target became a LOT harder.

"You son of a bitch!" Shani shouted, and then prepared to go after the Dagger, only for him to feel intense pain coursing through his body.

"AAAAHHHH!" he shouted in agony, as Orga began to suffer the withdrawal of the combat drugs.

"Oh shit! We're out of time!" the Calamity pilot shouted. Immediately afterwards, the two Extendeds turned around, and sped away from the combat zone, moving as fast as they could back towards Atlantic Federation lines.

"_They're falling back!_"

"_Yeah, but not for long, they'll be back once they regroup._"

"_One thing is sure, we're not gonna make it easy for them._"

"_Who cares? They're running! We did it! We won!_"

Across the Comm Channels, the cheers of victory were heard, as the EA forces were running scared across the lines. And now with the Freedom and Justice proving extra support, it was unlikely that they'd be coming back in such forces very soon.

Jordan sighed as he leaned back in his seat, watching as the EA forces ran. "We did it…" he muttered with a smile. "We actually pulled it off..."

Jordan looked at the screens around him, as he saw the results of the battle. There were a lot of EA mobile suits and vehicles that were destroyed, along with a few American vehicles and MS among them, however he was glad that the number of wrecked EA hulks outnumbered the American ones, telling him that if anyone took the most casualties, it was the Earth Forces.

One thing that caught his attention was when he spotted a 105 Dagger with an Aile Striker Pack, and a Sword Striker Sword, Shield and Beam Boomerang - recognizing it as Takeshi's unit. It was standing on top of a hill, watching the EA forces retreat.

Jordan walked the Schwarze Calamity forward, up the hill until he was standing next to the 105 Dagger, watching the EA forces as well. "You alright?" he asked Takeshi. The battle was so intense he hadn't gotten a chance to actually introduce himself to his online friend.

"_Yeah…_" Takeshi replied. "_Nowhere near done, though… this won't end until the EA and Blue Cosmos are unable to tear any more families apart…_"

Jordan nodded. "Yeah…" he said. "They need to be stopped, no matter what… sorry to hear about your family though, Takeshi. Would've loved to have met them if what you told me about them is true."

The Dagger turned to face the Schwarze Calamity, cocking its head as a symbol of its pilot's confusion. "_I take it we met before?_" he asked.

Jordan chuckled a bit. "Yes, well… just not in person… Azure Tempest," he said with a small smirk.

Takeshi gave a slight start at that, realizing just where he'd met the pilot before. "_Are you 117Jorn or Patriot-112?_" he asked.

Again, Jordan laughed. "The former, of course," he said. "117Jorn at your service, great to meet you in person, Takeshi. Wish it were under better circumstances."

Takeshi sighed. "_You and me both,_" he said. "_Still, I'm not going to wallow in sorrow. I won't let the EA do as they please any more, I won't let them separate any more families._" He paused for a moment. "_The EA and Blue Cosmos are one of the great Evils of this world… and to face them, I need to be more than I am now. I must become… I must become the Sword that Cleaves Evil._" In the cockpit, a small smile came to his face at the title, as he realized just who he had to expy, just what character meshed the best with him in this situation…

"And you're not going to do it alone," Jordan said. "We're going to destroy the Earth Alliance… all of us, together. And replace it with something better…" He frowned a bit. "The people of earth have had their souls dragged down by gravity for far too long… it will be up to us to correct that mistake."

Takeshi grinned. "_Nice Char Quote there,_" he mused. "_Anyway, let's get these things parked, and bring in the rest of my convoy. I think we've all got a bit of catching up to do._"

"That we do," Jordan said, nodding. "Tell your guys to head on into base, you can land on the _Archangel _if you need repair and the such." He then pressed the comm again. "Yo, Patriot! You there?"

"_Yeah, I'm here!_" said the pilot of the custom painted Dagger, and Jordan saw he was carrying an anti-ship sword, with said weapon resting against the shoulder. "_And I got a new toy, courtesy of Rena Imelia!_" The online buddies had united, none of them were dead and Patriot even got a new weapon. All in all, it was a good day. Well, except for Ron blacking out in the middle of the fight due to stim abuse. But they didn't know that Ron had been taking stims. Not yet, at least.

* * *

**Later - **_**Archangel **_**Hangar**

* * *

Once all of the EA forces had either withdrawn or been captured, the US Forces, along with the help of their new arrivals began scavenging through the battlefield for salvage. Looking for Mobile Suits that could be repaired and put back to use, as well as parts that could be used to maintain the machines they already have. Not to mention other samples of Alliance technology such as their Linear tanks and crashed F-7D's, anything that could be of use.

Now, the Schwarze Calamity, along with Takeshi and Patriot's 105 Daggers had landed on the _Archangel,_ shortly after the Justice, Freedom, and the other ZAFT and Orb machines had landed.

"Wow," Takeshi said as he looked around the hangar of the _Archangel_. "I knew you'd captured some Mobile Suits, Jordan, but I wasn't expecting you guys to have an EA battleship."

Jordan chuckled a bit. "That was pure luck, actually, and it's not ours, obviously," he said. "Belongs to some EA deserters, left after some battle up in Alaska at a place called JOSH-A. Mentioned something about the EA deeming them 'expendable' for some reason."

Takeshi nodded, knowing what battle Jordan was talking about and what he meant, but also knowing it was best to keep up a charade that they didn't know anything. "I see," he said. "Well, good to know that we at least have some people on our side for this." At that point, he saw a familiar-to-him head of red hair come up the boarding ramp into the _Archangel_. "Ah, Linda!" he called out to her, getting her attention.

"Ah, Takeshi," Linda greeted as she shifted the box of assorted electronics she was carrying. "Glad to see you made it through the battle."

"Yeah," he said, before waving her over. "Come on over, I want you to meet someone! This is a good friend of mine, Jordan Tackett, though I know him better from his Fanfiction Username of 117Jorn. Jorn, this is Linda McTavish, who my convoy picked up while we were at Nellis."

"Nice to meet you, Miss McTavish," Jordan said nodding as they shook hands. "Like he said, my name's Jordan Tackett, though my friends call me Jorn."

"Nice to meet you," Linda greeted. "They've got us techs loading up onto the _Archangel _here, apparently we're shipping off to space."

"Not for a while, I suppose," Jordan said, shaking his head. "If I understand their technology correctly, the only way for ships like the _Archangel _here to launch into space would be to use something called a Mass Driver. And the only ones available to them are in Victoria, Kaohsiung, and at a nation called Orb. And with all of the Earth Forces in the area… we're not going anywhere till we kick them out of California for good."

"Sounds like a tall order," Takeshi remarked. "Though, part of me thinks it might be easier to load up onto the _Archangel_ and that transport you have, blast our way to the coast, and from there make our way to Pearl Harbor - from what I've heard from my convoy commander, the Hawaiian Islands are still under our control, and I think they'd be a good place to regroup and plan a counterattack."

Jordan smiled a bit as he motioned his head for them to follow. "The General is way ahead of you - in a sense," he said as they walked through the hangar. "You're right about Hawaii - they got off almost scot free when our worlds collided. I asked one of the _Archangel's_ pilots about it, and he said that Pearl Harbor and Hawaii haven't been a military installation since something called the Reconstruction War - their version of World War III. 'Cause of that, most of the US Pacific Fleet stationed there is A-Okay. Better yet, ships of the US 3rd Fleet stationed at San Diego that survived the merge have fallen back there. They've got a good number of carriers still serving last I heard, and with enough manpower to put them and all other military assets they have to good use. And we already have a plan in motion to retake Los Angeles - we take LA back, California is as good as ours."

Takeshi smiled. "Very nice," he said. "I'm looking forward to helping out, and hopefully getting my hands on a better Mobile Suit - my Aile/Sword Dagger is a good machine, but I think I'd like something specialized for close quarters, rather than a general purpose model with close-combat equipment packs." He then cast a glance up at the Schwarze Calamity. "And if I could get something as high-performance as yours seems to be, I'd definitely like that."

Jordan chuckled as he glanced up at his MS. "I got her by pure luck, really," he said. "But I love her all the same." He then glanced at the Justice and Freedom, where he saw the pilots of the respective machines had finally left after securing themselves in the hangar.

"That red one was a latecomer to the battle, wasn't it?" Linda asked, even though she and Takeshi both knew who it was.

"Yeah, it was," Takeshi replied. "Was it an EA deserter like this battleship was?"

"I don't think so," Jordan said, playing along. "His flight suit looks more like the ones those ZAFT guys wore… he probably works for them if I were to guess."

The two nodded as the two pilots, with their helmets removed touched the floor of the hangar bay and looked at each other for a moment before they began to walk toward each other.

Jordan knew this scene all too well. The only difference was that the meeting was originally on a beach in Orb, instead of the hangar of the _Archangel_ like it was right now. Kira and Athrun had just left their respective Mobile Suits, each of them now walking towards one another, thinking of all the friends they had lost to one another over the past few months since January, all while the rest of the _Archangel_ crew watched in silence.

Takeshi knew the scene, too, and took a quick glance around… yep, there was Cagalli, off on the sidelines, but looking like she was ready to glomp either of the two at any time.

The two stopped walking as they now stood face to face with one another, eye to eye. It felt like a minute had passed before they were interrupted by a familiar "Tori" sound as he and Athrun looked up, to see Birdy land on Kira's shoulder.

Kira looked at the small bird, before finally he smiled a bit as he looked at his friend. "Hi, Athrun." He said, simply.

Athrun's fist clenched for just a brief second, before he loosened up a bit as he smiled a bit as well. "Hi, Kira," he responded.

It was after they said their hellos that Cagalli broke from the crowd, shouting to them before she glomped the two friends.

"Uh, Cagalli?" Kira said in surprise.

"Oh you guys!" Cagalli shouted, her eyes watering slightly. "You guys are such idiots!"

Both Kira and Athrun couldn't help but chuckle as Cagalli held them.

Jordan looked at the scene with a small smile on his face.

'_This is definitely one of those moments._' he thought as he continued to watch.

"You gotta admit," a voice said, and Jordan turned saw D.J. standing next to him, "moments like these when old friends who were trying to kill each other, reconcile."

Tanner and Dylan walked toward the two, clearly wanting to talk to them. "Uh, Patriot and Jorn, right?" Dylan said. "Ron said that we should talk to you guys if he wasn't available." He glanced over his shoulder, just as Titanic's tank crew dragged his unconscious body out of the Abrams. "And he's not exactly available at the moment."

They set him down on the hanger deck while Steven ran to get a gurney to get him to sickbay: he was too heavy to carry all the way there. "Holy shit, this guy weighs a ton!" Steven muttered.

"He said he was 260 pounds!" Jessica said.

"Geez…" Jordan said. "What the hell happened to him?"

"Don't know," Dylan said, shaking his head. "He wouldn't talk about what happened back in North Bay. And he stayed up later and was always awake before everyone else, like he never slept."

That reminded Jordan of something. Ron carried a 2-liter Coca-Cola bottle full of juice with him at all times. He even brought it with him into the Dagger. To the best of his knowledge, it was still in the cockpit. '_Ron isn't THAT stupid,_' he thought. '_He wouldn't have done that._'

Then again when he thought about it, it did explain why he was so bitchy and his berserker phase during the battle. He would have to find that bottle and have the doctor test it for any kind of drugs.

"Well, with the battle over it will be a while before the EA can assemble a force for a second attack," Jordan said. "And if what you guys told me is true about the shit you went through to get here… Ron needs all the rest he can get now."

D.J. nodded in agreement at that. "Yep and saves us from headaches," he said, and then looked at Ron's dagger, having remembered the same thing as Jordan. "I believe I'll get that Coke bottle."

"You do that," Jordan said nodding. "Takeshi, Linda, you two best follow me to meet the General. He'd probably want to meet you so we can discuss where you guys will be stationed at - and what role you will play in the next battle."

"Right," Takeshi said, with Linda nodding. "Lead the way, Jorn."

* * *

_**20 minutes later**_

* * *

Jordan brought the two to the command center near the Save Mart Center, where there was a gathering of Mobile Suits that were captured from the EA. The pilots of the machines were disembarking, while technicians began working on maintenance of the Mobile Suits, with some help from volunteers from the _Archangel_ who were teaching them how to maintain said machines.

Takeshi and Linda followed the Schwarze Pilot into the Command Center, where inside the General was looking at a map of California and surrounding states. Small figures which represented their positions - and those of the Earth Forces were present on the map.

General Toolan looked up, and nodded as he saw Jordan walk in. "Jordan," he said. "Good work out there. Somehow we managed to hold the line, thanks to your friends." He looked at Takeshi and Linda. "Who are they?"

Jordan gestured to Takeshi. "This is Takeshi Yamato," he said. "This is the pilot of the 105 Dagger of the group who contacted us at Nellis. And with him is Linda McTavish, from the same group."

The General nodded. "Good to have you here," he said. "Your forces certainly saved our asses in that fight, not to mention Sergeant Bakers team with those ZAFT machines… I had almost listed his entire company KIA. Either way, having you here now should make life easier for us now."

"Thank you, sir," Takeshi said with a nod. "Linda might not be a soldier, but she's a pretty good physicist, and has helped me figure out some of the variables for proper configuration of my machine's OS."

"The world can be broken down into ones and zeros," Linda declared. "After learning things like that, computer programming algorithms are easy."

The General nodded. "Good, we can use her help to get our machines and pilots squared away," he said, before he sighed. "But, I've got good news, better news, and bad news. The good news is we managed to establish communications with High Command - they've re-established themselves at Austin, Texas, and are managing to coordinate the remaining US Forces across their defensive lines along the south. And the better news is that they've been taking your examples, and have been capturing a number of Earth Forces mobile weapons."

Jordan and the others smiled. "That's good," he said. "Great even, means future battles aren't going to be so one-sided anymore." He then frowned. "But… what's the bad news?"

The General sighed as he sat down in his chair. "Command… in all their infinite wisdom," he said with sarcasm laced in his voice. "Has issued new orders to me and our forces here… they've outlined new plans for Operation: Forty Niner… they want us to retake San Francisco, use it as a staging area to retake Los Angeles and San Diego."

Jordan and the others blinked in surprise, before his eyes widened. "Wait… by _ourselves?_" he asked. "Sir, we may have Mobile Suits, but… me and D.J. did recon around that area. San Francisco is like fucking Normandy at this point! It's crawling with Earth Forces, and it's their base of operations for every attack they've launched against us!"

"I told them the same thing, but they didn't listen," the General said with a sigh. "They're hoping that with the firepower of the _Archangel,_ those advanced 'Gundam' Type Mobile Suits, as well as the other machines we've gathered will be enough to pierce through their defenses." He sighed. "Thankfully, there is some good news with that… in order to help us in retaking San Francisco, Command says they're going to send assets from Pearl Harbor to help us in the attack, including assets from the 3rd Fleet."

Jordan sighed. "This isn't good…" he muttered before he sighed. "Then again… they are right that taking San Francisco would go a long way in taking the rest of California back." He looked at the General. "When do they want us to attack?"

"Three days from today," the General said. "Command hopes that we can catch the Earth Forces off guard with a sudden counter-attack just a short time after their recent assault. "

"Could work," Takeshi remarked. "We'll need to be quick about it, though - if we take too long, they'll get reinforcements from other areas, and we'd be in trouble. It'll have to be blitzkrieg at its finest."

"My thoughts exactly," The General said, nodding, before he sighed. "You'd best tell the rest of your boys, Jordan, Takeshi. You need to get as much rest tonight as you can, because tomorrow we mount up and mobilize, and the day after that… the 3rd Fleet arrives, and the Operation begins."

Jordan nodded as he saluted. "I'll inform Patriot and the others," he said. "They probably won't like it though, but orders are orders I guess."

"I'll need to see about getting my machine painted," Takeshi informed, "but that shouldn't take too long."

The General nodded as he returned the salute. "Dismissed," he said as the trio nodded before they left the Command Center.

* * *

**Later that Day**

* * *

D.J. sighed as he sat down on a folding chair, removing his O.D. boonie hat as he wiped the sweat off his face. He had taken the Coke bottle which was still half full and delivered it to the _Archangel's_ doctor. Now he was waiting for the results.

While he was waiting he picked up the FAL he borrowed from Bruce's collection. The battle rifle worked well for him, but he was beginning to feel that he needed to replace it, and soon. He believed in the concept that weapons that were still useful shouldn't be replaced, but he was also a realist. He sighed again, as he placed the rifle in his lap.

"I think I need to get either an AK, AR-15, or any sort of rifle," he said with a little bit of remorse. "You did good, ya old thoroughbred."

"Who says it still can't?" a voice said, and Patriot turned to see Jordan enter the room. "I can understand where you're coming from. My SKS-M worked good… but it's just not my kind of rifle. However that doesn't mean it can't still be used." He shrugged. "Look at Mobile Suits, for example - there's no doubting they're the future for combat in our world. However, just because Mobile Suits are used, things like tanks, infantry, and such can still be useful. Look at the Universal Century - hell, look at our world now! Jessica and her team are causing some serious damage with their own tanks. Everything has value… even if others would like to disagree."

"I know what you're saying," a female voice said as Jessica stepped into the room. "But Ron seems to think not."

"Yeah," Jordan said shaking his head. "His reasons are justified, but I don't agree with them most of the time." He then looked at the two. "Anyways, got some news for you guys… in a few days we're mobilizing - destination San Francisco."

Jessica looked at him in surprise. "Hold on," she said. "That means that we're going to start bringing the fight to the EA and AF, right? Won't that mess things up for us? I mean, isn't the place like a fraggin' fortress now?"

"Not in the slightest, Titanic," Jordan said, referring her to her username. "We've got good defenses - but the longer we stay here, the quicker we'll run out of supplies. Food, ammo, medicine… we're gonna run out eventually if we stay here. If we can retake San Francisco, then we have access to their ports and the San Francisco Airport. With those we can start shipping in supplies from the rest of the U.S Military and our allies."

He then sighed. "However, taking San Francisco is the real problem," he said. "Me and Patriot have done a few good scouting rounds of the city. Their defenses compared to ours is like comparing a hill to a mountain range. They're dug in deep with defenses. If we want to pull this off… we need all available hands on deck for this one, even with the 3rd Fleet supporting us in the operation. "

Jessica pursed her lips as she thought about it. "If that's the case...then we may need to do something a bit more… unexpected…" she said. "And I have an idea."

She pulled an old map out of her pocket and laid it out. "On our way here, we stopped and grabbed a map from someplace further back. This may be of some help with the idea I have planned." She pointed at several major road junctions. "Look. In WWII, the Soviets cut off the Germans at Stalingrad, right? Well, I was thinking of pulling the same thing. But by having the major road junctions cut off. We have some serious firepower coming in with 3rd Fleet, right? I was planning on having them fire at these road junctions, effectively reducing them to rubble and cutting off any possible reinforcements from coming into the city. Or at least delaying them. This will buy us some time to attack the city and take the airport and the port. This way we can effectively render them sitting ducks until it's too late."

She then looked up at Jorn and Patriot. "I don't know if it'll work, but at least it's a shot."

Jordan looked at the map. "It sounds good on paper, but there are a few problems," he said. "The positions you're pointing out are guarded - but only by small forces. Striking them wouldn't really do much to the enemy's main force, plus even if you bombard the positions, it doesn't cut the enemy off. They can move around craters you know."

"I know. But what I'm saying is this could do something, if we strike it at the same time as when we start our attack. Cause confusion," she said.

"It wouldn't cause much," Jordan said shaking his head. "It's like Ron said - the Earth Forces aren't stupid. If we start bombarding them, it would only make them more alert." He pointed at the map. "My plan is more effective and simple. Our best bet is to have our forces advance up through San Jose, using Route 101. We've scouted that area out before, and was a major pathway US Forces in San Francisco used to get out of the area and back to where we are. However at the same time, since then the Earth Forces have set up defenses at Gilroy and Morgan Hill. They're relatively light. However if we act quickly we can catch them off guard before they can report in to command. By the time we take them, we can start advancing through San Jose, and into the San Francisco bay area."

He then pointed to the area around San Francisco. "The real trick is securing both sides of San Francisco Bay, while also dealing with the Earth Forces fleet that had taken up residence in the area," he said. "Thankfully, the General sent me a message that the 3rd Fleet will launch an Amphibious attack in coordination with our attack - strike the EA forces both from behind and up front. The Fleet itself will provide artillery support when it can, but it will focus most of its efforts on killing the Earth Forces fleet in the bay." He grinned a bit. "Thankfully, their fleet is still in the bay. Meaning if we play our cards right… we can trap their fleet in the bay, and turn it into a good old fashion turkey shoot. There is only one way in or out of the bay, and that's through Golden Gate, making it a bottleneck for their forces."

Jessica narrowed her eyes at the plan. "I understand what you're saying. And I do agree that it is simpler, but how are we supposed to deal with any reinforcements coming up from San Diego, LA, and the northern flanks of the city? That's what we need to deal with." She pointed at the roads crossing the water. "We need to prevent any forces coming in from the north and south and east." She then looked at him directly. "How do you factor that in?"

"Well…" Patriot said, getting their attention. "We can do what the 6th Rangers and the Filipino guerrillas did during the Cabanatuan POW Camp Raid, where the Rangers attacked the camp, while the guerrillas held up any IJA reinforcements from reaching the Camp."

Jordan sighed. "You guys are forgetting that San Diego and Los Angeles are to the _south,_ and San Francisco is to the _north,_" he said. "The distance between them is roughly 500 Kilometers. And even _then,_ they are too busy with fighting US Forces in Arizona - keeping them from linking up with us - to send aid to San Francisco, especially after their failed attack today. Attacking when we are now may actually be a blessing in disguise, since they are probably still reeling from their recent defeat, taking into account for the losses they've taken."

"Still need to be careful, though. Any small number of AF, even if it's just tanks, can be a big pain in the ass." Patriot said, clearly knowing that a smaller force can make a larger one fall back in a route, like the Confederates did at Chancellorsville. "We're gonna need some more firepower in order to deal with that."

It was at that moment that a person came up to them, which was one of their BSF Guerillas, dressed in a Polish Army BDU. He was about 17, and carried a M14 rifle on his shoulder.

"There you guys are! I've been looking all over for you!" the guerilla said.

"What is it?" Jordan asked. "Is something wrong?"

The trio became confused by the smile on the teen's face. "Actually, it's best you come yourself," he said, causing the three online friends to blink and stood up and followed the guerrilla to a Dodge M880 pickup truck painted in woodland camo. The teen Guerilla and Jordan got in the cab, while D.J. and Jessica jumped in the back and then the truck started and took off.

* * *

_**Few hours later**_

_**Tamarack Forest, Backbone Mountain**_

* * *

After a few hours of driving, the truck came to a stop - arriving at the base of the mountain. Around them were a few other trucks that had been mounted with machine gun turrets on them, with other members of Black Sword manning the area, keeping a watch for movement.

The group stepped out of their own truck, as they approached what they were all guarding - a large steel door built into the side of the mountain. "What the heck is that?" Jordan asked as they approached it.

"We found it just yesterday, along with a squad of the National Guard." said one the teens. "We saw some Army markings along with a DoD symbol near the door."

Jordan raised an eyebrow as they approached the massive door. "Have… you been able to open it?" he asked. "And do we have any idea what's on the other side?"

The teen then pointed over to a group of men dressed in Army ACU uniforms, as they tinkered what looked like a control panel.

"The National Guard guys have been at it since we found it," he said and the group walked over to the Guardsmen. "Any luck with that you guys?"

The National Guard continued working without looking up. "Making progress…" he said. "This thing is pretty dated… whatever this place is, its been around since the 1950's or 60's."

D.J. looked at the panel and then the DoD seal. "Must be a fallout shelter for V. like the President or any other government official," he said, and another Guardsmen nodded at that.

"That's what we figured, as well," he said, a loud clank was heard from the door.

"Voila!" he shouted, as the door began to creak open, letting out a loud groan as the door which has likely not been used for a _long _time were re-opened into the darkness before them.

Jordan, D.J and the others were the first to walk in, their weapons raised as they checked the inside. "Can't see a damn thing..." Jordan muttered. "Anyone got a light?"

"Hang on, got some switches here..." another BSF member said, "Let's try… this one."

With that a series of lights switched on, showing the edge of a balcony and the tops of staircases, in front of them. They could see the back of the wall which was a very good distance away from them.

"Wow, this place is big!" D.J. said in awe.

Jessica let out a whistle. "What is this place? And what's in here?" she asked.

"Only one way to find out..." Jordan said, shouldering his rifle as he continued to walk forward. "Come on. Let's see what this place is. We're burning daylight. "

The others followed his example as they walked toward the end of the balcony, and what they saw made their eyes widen so much that they may pop out of their sockets.

"Ho-ly SHIT!" was what almost everyone was saying at what they were seeing. Down below them were rows and rows of tanks, lots and lots of tanks - specifically ones of the Patton series from the M48 to the M60, along with numerous other vehicles from the Cold War era.

D.J. gave out a low whistle at what he was seeing. "Now that's a lot of tanks," he said, while everyone nodded at that.

Managing to snap out of it, Jordan then turned to one of the Guardsmen. "I… don't think this is a simple VIP bunker," he said. "Send word to the General. I think he should know about this." The guardsman nodded as he rushed back to inform the General.

Jessica nodded. "That is a ton of firepower…" she murmured. "And I thought the M1A3 was formidable…"

"Question is what is all of this stuff doing here? And these tanks look as if they just came out of a factory. I don't see a speck of rust on them," Patriot said.

"Probably never seen action," Jordan said, as he eyed the tanks. "These tanks are covered with dust… I doubt anyone has been down here for a long time." He turned to the rest of the BSF members with them. "I want everyone to start searching this place, top to bottom!" he said. "I want to know what exactly this place is, why it's here, and just how large it really is! Also have someone check those tanks! See if they're still serviceable!"

The guerillas then dispersed as a few of them descended down the stairs while others went off in different directions to inspect the base. Then Jordan, D.J., and the rest then began to go down the stairs themselves looking at the large number of tanks and utility vehicles.

"Definitely Patton series..." Jordan muttered as his hands grazed the armor of one of the Tanks "Looks like an M48…" he looked around, "Others look like their of the M60 variant… that means this place has to of been around since 1950's at least, just like the Guardsman said…"

"Could they help out in the fighting?" Jessica asked, as Jordan looked at the Tanks.

"Possibly," he said. "Even though the M48 was retired in the 1990's by the US Army, they're still in service in other minor countries like Iran, Greece, South Korea, and Taiwan. Same for the M60's… they usually use 90mm to 105mm Guns depending on what variant they were, so they could damage Mobile Suits…" He sighed. "But, no matter how we put it… these things are pretty out-dated. Wouldn't last in a one-on-one fight, but if we used them like we do our current tanks in supporting and hit-and-run roles… we can use them."

D.J. nodded at that, as they continued to look at the rows of tanks until finally arriving and spotting the utility vehicles, which were mainly Willy's Jeeps, all of them covered by clear plastic tarps.

"There's enough for a whole Armored Corps here," Jessica said, and D.J. nodded.

"Yeah…" he said, "…plus some extra"

"Hey!" a shout came from the other end of the room. "Come over here! We found something!"

Jordan nodded to the others as they rushed over to the source of the voice, where BSF members were gathered around a small door which was now opened. The trio stepped inside, and their eyes widened as they saw the contents inside. Jordan began to develop a face-splitting grin.

"Oh hell the fuck yes…" he muttered, at the sight of dozens upon dozens of weapons all neatly lined and piled up around them. M16's, M14's, even AK series and other Russian firearms were within the room. MPi-KM's, AKM's, AK-74's, AK-47's, basically every single weapon weapon from the Warsaw Pact to the Early NATO days was in that room.

D.J. then walked over and picked up a AKMS underfolder, and pulled back the bolt of the weapon and he blinked.

"What the fuck? There's still grease in these things, they never been fired!" he said incredulously, as he then slung the gun over on his shoulder.

"Well, considering that I doubt there's ever been any fighting here until recently, they never _needed _to be fired." Jordan said as he slung his SKS-M as he picked up an M14 Rifle with a scope mounted on top of it. He checked the rifle as he aimed down the scope, before he grinned "At least now they're going to be put to good use."

D.J. nodded, as he looked around some more before he spotted a stack of crates. Moving over to them, he saw what looked like Arabic writing and the flag of Libya.

"Hey Jorn, take a look at this." he said, as Jorn came over with the M14 slung over his shoulder and he looked at the crates before he blinked.

"Libya?" he said confusedly. "What are crates from Libya doing here?"

"I don't know..." D.J said, as he tried to pry one of them open. It was easier than he though as the Crate snapped open, and the two looked inside to see its contents. And their eyes widened to see 5 RPG-7 rocket launchers, with backpacks each carrying 4 rockets.

"Ho-ly shit! How the hell did the DoD get a hold of these?" D.J. said, before he blinked and saw what looked like a pamphlet and took it out.

"What's it say?" Jordan asked, as D.J read through the Pamphlet's contents, as he blinked in surprise again.

"Its… a good faith letter," he said, "Its says these crates were meant for the Real Irish Republican Army."

"The RIRA?" Jordan asked in surprise, "What are those doing here then?"

"The reason they're here Tackett is because they were bought from the British after they were seized."

Everyone turned and saw General Toolan and a group of Marines.

"General, you know something about this place?" D.J. asked and the General nodded his head.

"Just rumors actually. Back in the 80's and early 90's when I was still a Lieutenant," Toolan said, as he picked up an M4 carbine. "This place serves as one of several emergency arms depot bunkers, which also serves as a place for weapons the military didn't need, but couldn't destroy. Not only that, but it also served as a VIP Bunker and Mountain Fortress."

"From what I heard," he continued as he walked down the lines of weapons, "after the Cold War ended with the Soviets collapsing, places like these were decommissioned, and basically mothballed, largely forgotten in most US records. But as you can see, they never bothered to remove all of the supplies they had brought here, likely so that if a need for this base _did _arise again, it could be brought back up to operational status quickly without moving supplies in."

"Any idea how large this place really is, sir?" Jordan asked. "I feel like we've only just started seeing what this place has to offer."

"I wouldn't know," The General said shrugging "But you're right that this is likely just the start of the base… by my best guess at what most American-made bunkers during the Cold War were like… this place could be as small as just a few Kilometers of Tunnels, to taking up the whole damn mountain range from here to Yosemite, running more than hundreds of Kilometers around."

The eyes of the two widened at that.

"Shit, Sir…" D.J. said. "Now that is big."

Toolan nodded at that. "Like I said, it's just a theory," he said, before he smirked. "But one thing is for sure. You boys found us a gold mine."

Jordan was about to say something when one of the guerillas showed up, and after saluting the General, turned back to Jordan and D.J.

"Hey, we found something you guys want to see," he said with a smile.

Jordan looked at the others, as the General nodded before they followed the Guerilla through the tunnels of the underground fortress. They traveled for a few good minutes until finally they reached a large opening, causing the others to look around in surprise.

"What the…" D.J. muttered. The opening was massive - probably about the size of a pair of Aircraft Carriers' flight decks. And that wasn't all, as lined up in the room were numerous more vehicles, specifically Helicopters and other VTOL craft including UH-1N Twin Hueys, AH-1 Cobras, and unless Jordan was mistaken, near the back he saw a few Harrier IIs, and even five Mi-24 Hind-Ds.

"It's… some sort of hangar…" Jordan muttered as he looked at all of the aircraft inside. "There's all sorts of helicopters in here… but how do they get out?"

"Up there," the guerrilla said, pointing up. "A chunk of the mountain opens up to allow VTOL craft in and out. We tested it out, and the system still works. And that's not all. Some of our guys went deeper in the base and they reportedly found some sort of tank factory down below. It's got tons of incomplete M60's on old production lines."

D.J. blinked at that. "You're kidding, this place also has a factory?" he said, and another guerilla nodded.

"We're not, and take a look at the Hinds," he said, and the group looked at the Hind, especially the wings and noticed the rocket pods were those found on the Cobra and Apache.

"Looks like it's been modified to use NATO weaponry instead of Russian ones…" Jordan observed as he looked at the aircraft. "Probably for the best either way…" He then looked around the hangar, as he smirked. "Is this the only hangar here?"

"We don't know," the guerrilla said, shrugging. "Could be, this place is pretty damn big from what we've found so far… why?"

Jordan turned to the others, still smirking. "Guys… I think we may have found our new Central Command," he said. "With hangars this size, we could store all of our Mobile Suits in here rather than keeping them out in the open… not to mention this place is way more secure than the store we're using as an HQ now. And if we can convert that tank factory to manufacture parts for Mobile Suits…"

Jessica's eyes widened as she grasped the importance of the hangar. "You have a point," she noted. "I mean, this place is buried deep enough, not to mention if it has all that possible tunnel space, and the hangar size…" She turned to face Jordan. "This place could also be defended against the EA and AF both if they tried to attack."

D.J. nodded, as he smirked. "Like our own Jaburo…" he said, and then hummed in thought.

"I agree," the General said nodding. "This place is far more easy to defend… assuming we can't take San Francisco, this will be the best place for us to fall back to. And we can use it when we prepare to take San Diego and Los Angeles."

The three friends all smirked at that. Knowing that this place will help them greatly in the future.

"I say we all move in," said D.J. "This place is big enough for everyone, assuming it has enough barracks for people to sleep in."

"Considering how big this place is, I gamble it does," Jordan said, nodding. "We can alw

ays make more room for Swordbase."

Everyone nodded at that.

"Well, let's continue to look around, there has to be more stuff in this place," D.J. said, and the group split up while Toolan turned to the Marines and began giving orders to look around the area.

* * *

**Hours later**

* * *

Many people, both military and civilian, came to the entrance of the old Cold War bunker, all of them surprised that it even existed. D.J., Jordan, and the other BSF guerillas and military had looked through the rest of the base, and made some interesting discoveries.

As they had expected, the base was very large, taking up over 100 Kilometers worth of tunnels filled with numerous different rooms from mess halls, medical facilities and barracks to motor pools and helicopter hangars - the former of which they found out there were three helicopter hangars built into the base.

As for space, thankfully there was more than enough to account for not just the military personnel, but also for the civilians as they were allowed to live inside the safety of the bunker rather than risk staying outside. While some civilians opted to remain outdoors in RV's and trailers, they were sure to relocate themselves within the perimeter of the base.

They also managed to locate the hub of the bunker, which was reminiscent of the Nerve Center from COD: Black Ops, of course the computers were old, but the radar screens were still functioning.

From the armory, they managed to count at least 40,000 small arms and 10,000 other weapons. They also managed to discover numerous surpluses of freeze-dried food, medical supplies and other needed material to keep them running for quite a while. And along with the battalion's worth of Patton-series tanks, other utility vehicles, and many different types of helicopters.

They had also discovered another storeroom which contained field gear, including some old M1 steel helmets.

The doctor on the _Archangel_ also found out that Ron had, indeed, put stims in that bottle of his. Why Ron, who knew better than to use drugs of any kind, had been taking them since practically the beginning of the war on the 9th, no one knew: even Tanner and Dylan didn't have any idea why. Of course, they planned on interrogating him as to why the second the intelligent dumbass woke up.

Also, with the discovery of the abandoned tank factory within the fortress, engineers from the US as well as the _Archangel _volunteers were working at converting it to begin building the parts necessary to repair and manufacture Mobile Suits. They said it would be a while for the factory was in working order, but they would be working around the clock on it after the upcoming battle.

One thing was for sure, their odds just went up extremely.

Jordan was in one of the hangar bays, watching as the Mobile Suits were brought inside the base through the hangars. They had to clear out some of the Helicopters in the hangar to make room for the Mobile Suits, but it wasn't anything too troublesome as there was still plenty of room inside. Jordan was sitting on some crates stacked next to where the Schwarze Calamity now stood, and sitting next to him was, surprisingly, a classical guitar.

With everything that had been going on ever since the merge of their world and the Cosmic Era, Jordan had been finding new ways to keep himself occupied when there was nothing else to do. Since there was little to no power, playing games on the Xbox 360 was out of question for now. But during one of their early missions, Jordan found the guitar in a bombed out town in good condition, so he took it and brought it back with him. Since then, he had been learning how to use it properly, using what he remembered from what his brother taught him when he'd want to use his guitar.

Thinking about that brought a bit of a sour note to Jordan, as he thought about his family back to the east. While South Carolina was still under United States control, there was still a lot of fighting that went down over there upon the initial merge. He could only hope that his family was alright - let alone his family that was in Earth Forces-occupied Ohio and Kentucky. He was worried sick about his mother, father, brother, sister-in-law, his niece, his nephew… everyone.

Jordan shook his head as he picked up his guitar, wanting to think about something else. He gave the strings of the guitar a small string, before he closed his eyes and began to play one of the few guitar songs he could play so far.

* * *

**Meanwhile - Elsewhere in the Hangar**

* * *

Meanwhile, after helping with the move and after things had calmed down a bit, Athrun and Kira were finally able to sit down in the hangar and talk to one another.

"However, that's..." Athrun said, and Kira shook his head.

"Yes, I'm aware of the difficulties," he said, before Cagalli showed up, bringing them some drinks. "Thanks," he said as he handed one to Athrun. "Anyways, but I also believe that it can't be helped. I believe what Cagalli's father says to be true. Should Orb side with the Earth Forces, the Atlantic Federation will take advantage of them and attack the PLANTs. And the same thing if Orb decides to side with ZAFT."

Kira shook his head. "But that won't help things one bit," he said. "I can no longer live with that. That's why I…"

"But you…" Athrun began to said, but Kira shook his head before he looked towards the ground.

"I killed a comrade of yours," he admitted, causing Athrun to flinch a bit. "A Personal friend… but I never knew him… and it's not as if I wanted to kill him." He then glanced back at him. "You killed Tolle," he said, "but you never knew him either. And it's not as if you wanted to kill him, was it?"

Athrun was quiet for a moment before answering. "No..." He said, "But… I tried to kill you..."

"Same here," Kira said, causing Athrun to look at him in surprise with wide eyes. "Athrun..." He looked up at where the Freedom and Justice now stood. "It would be great if we lived in a world where we didn't have to fight. If only we could live forever in such a world."

He paused for a moment, as he thought about the times he had before Heliopolis was attacked, when life was simple and not all about war. "But…" he said. "This war continues to spread..."

Athrun frowned a bit, as he remembered what his father told him when he received the Justice, about needing the power of Nuclear Energy, with the N-Jammer Canceller.

"At this rate, the PLANT's and the Earth Alliance will have no choice but to destroy one another." Kira said, causing Athrun to look at him in surprise again. "Therefore, I've decided to fight. Because, although it was to protect others, I have already pulled the trigger. Are we destined to fight each other again?"

"Kira…" Athrun muttered, as he looked at his friend, remembering the words of Lacus Clyne at the theatre before he left the PLANTs.

**BGM: 'Reignite' By Malufenix**

However, before either of them could say anything more… they heard something, the sound of slow guitar music being played, opting both them and Cagalli to look up in surprise. "Where…" Cagalli muttered.

_Hope, can drown, Lost in Thunderous sound. _

_Fear, can claim what little faith remains. _

Kira and Athrun stood up, knowing they've heard that voice before, opting them and Cagalli to search for the source.

_But I carry strength from souls now gone,_

_They won't let me give in…_

They walked through the hangar for a while, before they came upon where the Schwarze Calamity stood, and surprisingly where they found Jordan sitting on some crates, playing on a guitar with his eyes closed, singing.

_I will never surrender,_

_We'll free the earth and sky. _

_Crush my heart into embers, _

_and I will reignite…_

_I aha… I aaaha… I aaahaai _

_I will reignite._

Jordan just continued playing on the guitar, not noticing that slowly a crowd was beginning to form around him. He was just focusing on singing that song, that one song he's loved for quite a while.

_Death, will take, those who fight alone. _

_But, united we can break, a fate once set in stone. _

_Just hold the line until the end,_

'_Cause we will give them hell…_

Jordan began to quicken his pace slightly, keeping with the beat of the song as he closed to the end.

_I will never surrender, _

_We'll free the earth and sky. _

_Crush my heart into embers,_

_and I will reignite. _

_I aha… I aaaha… I aaahaai _

_I will reignite._

_I aha… I aaaha… I aaahaai _

_I will reignite._

Jordan's song came to a close as he finished his last notes, as he opened his eyes, before blinking as he saw a bit of a crowd having formed around him. "Oh, uhh…" he said a bit nervously. "You guys, uhh… heard that?"

Jessica was surprised at his singing. "You… I didn't know you could sing like that…" she murmured.

Takeshi was fighting to keep his jaw from dropping. "That… that was on par with the likes of JAM Project…" he breathed.

Jordan blinked as he looked at them, before he shook his head. "Nah, I can't be _that _good..." he said. "I've only been doing this stuff for a week."

D.J. only smirked. "Don't cut yourself short, Jordan. If you could, and started a career, you could already have a few golden records by the end of the year," he said.

"You're actually not that bad," Athrun said with a shrug. "Lacus would probably say you're pretty good."

Jordan blinked. "Who's Lacus?" he asked, continuing to play the role of ignorance even though he knew damn good and well who Lacus was.

"She's… a friend of mine," Athrun said. "She's also the PLANT's number one Pop Star Idol."

"I see…" Takeshi remarked. "I wonder how she'd compare to JAM Project, or even singers from Anime, like Sheryl Nome…" He already knew that answer, at least as far as he was concerned - Lacus' songs were good, but they lacked the fast-paced energy that JAM Project's songs, and even Sheryl's songs, had - but he still needed to play the role of ignorance… not to mention he didn't want to say anything in Kira or Athrun's presence that they could take as an insult to Lacus' talents.

Jordan scratched the back of his head nervously. "Well, I doubt I'd ever be as good as her if she's _that _famous…" he muttered. "I'm not _that _good…"

D.J. could only shake his head as he muttered something along the lines of "confidence issues".

"Either way, man. You make a real morale booster," he said. "Who knows, maybe Miss Lacus can ask you to participate in her concerts."

"I doubt that..." he muttered before he shook his head. "Anyways, I think we should finish up whatever needs to be finished… we've got a big day tomorrow after all."

Jessica nodded. "Yeah. The sooner we get things done here the better. We have an operation to carry out."

* * *

_**Archangel**_** sickbay**

* * *

The human body could take a lot of punishment before it finally decides to give you the finger and shut down on you. In Ronald Pinkerton's case, a light case of malnutrition and heavy stimulant use knocked him out in the middle of a major battle. Of course, Ron was a big man: all he really needed was time to recover from it. That wouldn't prevent him from having the biggest headache in the history of headaches, though.

"My fucking head…" Ron muttered as he finally came too. "What the hell happened last night?" He shook slightly before noticing that he wasn't in his bed back in North Bay. He seemed to be in a hospital room. Wearing a hospital gown. "Christ, it's fucking cold."

"Glad to see you are awake, Mr. Pinkerton," a voice said, as Ron looked up and saw the _Archangel's_ doctor standing there with a clipboard. "You're up earlier than I expected. How are you feeling?"

"Like shit, how else?" Ron growled, as he was not exactly happy. "Doc, I've lost a lot of weight over the past year, so I'd like you not to strip me down next time. It's fucking cold in here."

"It's perfectly fine," the doctor said, and Ron rolled his eyes.

"For YOU," he countered. "I still haven't gotten used to not having an inch or two of fat keeping my body heat in. So, if it's not too much trouble, I'd like my clothes back."

"Right next to you," the doctor said, pointing to the chair next to his bed where his clothes were neatly piled up. "Though I hope you will be able to answer _why _you thought it wise to add stimulants into your grape juice, Mr. Pinkerton."

'_Saw THAT coming,_' Ron thought with a sigh. "I won't lie to you, but it's a complicated story," he said. "I was the only one who had any idea what we were doing for some reason, and I had to take command of a military convoy. I couldn't sleep, so… stims. Bad idea and I knew it, but what choice did I really have?"

"You're not telling me the whole story." The Doctor said.

'_Right, like you'd want to know you're from an alternate universe that just so happens to be publicized as an anime and manga series here,_' Ron thought as he shook his head. "Take what you can get, Doc," he said. "My problems are mine and mine alone."

The Doctor sighed as he shook his head. "Just don't try something like that again," he said. "And I highly suggest you get some rest for today and tomorrow, because I've heard the day after tomorrow the attack on San Francisco is going to begin."

"Trojan War, part two," Ron muttered. "Christ, why didn't they just shoot me?"

* * *

**Meanwhile, Back in Bagram Air Base**

**Afghanistan**

**Equilateral Union**

* * *

Patricia sighed in irritation as she, along with most of the base personnel who were 'interned' by the E.U. troops, sat near one of the hangars as they waited for their captors' commander. While waiting she talked to some of the troops, asking what was happening. What she was told chilled her to the bone.

After recovering from that bit of information, though, she had an increasing desire to kill the son of a bitch who caused this slowly, painfully and repeatedly. Don't ask about that last part. Still, they had a MAJOR problem. The United States were getting their asses handed to them, although a few lucky rebel forces had managed to deal some damage to them. Even so, OMNI Enforcer, the military arm of the state that she had learned was called the Earth Alliance, was planning on crushing those 'terrorists' with the utmost speed and efficiency once something called ZAFT was dealt with. Until then, the US would be something like the Pacific War: a war of containment and nothing else.

'_What a total cluster fuck,' _she thought. '_I bet neither the Doc or myself had predicted this to happen.' _

"Colonel Patricia Rosen, if I'm correct?," a voice said, and she looked up and saw one of the E.U. soldiers, an officer by the looks of it.

Patricia sighed as she stood up. "That would be me," she said. "What do you want?"

"The Base Commander wishes to speak with you," the E.U. soldier said. "Please, follow me." It wasn't that she had an actual choice. She could either obey or the heavily armed men could and would kill her with what she assumed were 7.62mm assault rifles. She was human and thus that rather annoying sense of self-preservation kicked in. Didn't mean she was happy about it.

"Fine," she said. "Let's get this over with." She followed the man out of the room and toward the commander's office. Armed men were everywhere and escape was more or less suicidal.

A few minutes later, as she was now inside the Base Commander office, where she found Anton was sitting in a chair across from the commander. Sitting across from him behind the desk was the man - who she made the correct assumption was the base commander. He was a man appearing to be of Filipino descent surprisingly, with short crew cut black hair and brown eyes appearing to be in his late thirties or early forties. He was wearing a light brown colored dress uniform, which was standard among this 'Equilateral Union'.

The Base Commander looked up at the woman, and gave her a small smile. "Ah, you must be Colonel Rosen, correct?" he asked as he stood up, extending his hand in greeting. "Colonel General Emilio Mendoza, pleasure to meet you."

Patricia looked at him in surprise for a moment. The base commander was more… welcoming than she expected him to be. However nonetheless she extended her own hand and shook his "It's, uhh… nice to meet you, too, General," he said.

"Indeed," Emilio said. "First off, I apologize for our… encounter earlier today, but you have to understand things have been _very _hectic around here, and a lot of my men are on edge."

Patricia sighed at that. "I had seen that, I'm just thankful your men are not that great marksmen." she said tiredly.

"I'm glad they missed actually," Emilio said before he sighed, as he sat down. "I spoke with your friend here, as well as having a word with the… American forces we've captured here, and we've discovered that you are the highest ranking officer here… and this is why I brought you here."

Patricia blinked at that. "But... what about the Commandant of the…" she began to say but Emilio sighed.

"Unfortunately, he was killed in the confusion, when the command building was hit by stray shell fire, along with his command staff." he said, and Patricia was shocked by that. "But that's aside the point Colonel, since we both have bigger things to worry about… has anyone told you what is going on?"

Patricia sighed. "Just the basics… as strange as it all sounds still…" she said. "Two worlds colliding like this?"

Emilio nodded, sighing. "Yes… it's caused quite a lot of confusion across the world, the Equilateral Union being no exception," he said. "However recently fighting has died down across the countries that the EU's territory crosses over, and we've managed to negotiate something of a cease fire and peace with the nations such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Papua New Guinea. We have similar reports coming from our allies in Scandinavia, managing to work out a truce with Norway, Sweden, and Finland."

Patricia nodded her head. "That's good… right?" she asked, and the Commander nodded.

"For the most part, yes," he said before he sighed again. "But the rest of the world? …not so much. Though the Oceanian Union has managed to secure a truce between them, Australia, and ZAFT, nations that are still part of the Earth Alliance are still in intense fighting. The Eurasian Federation, Atlantic Federation, South African Union, and Republic of East Asia… fighting in those areas hasn't died down a bit except in former REA-controlled Japan. Which… makes this situation even more complex."

Anton decided to speak up. "The General told me that the Earth Alliance, while wanting to get back to the war with ZAFT, needs to secure its own borders before it can launch any more attacks on them," he said. "Russian Forces have either fallen back to Siberia along with what's left of the military and political forces of Central Asian countries, the Middle East is well… the middle east, and Europe isn't in a necessarily good boat either. Most of them having either retreated south into Africa, north into Scandinavia, or in the case of France, Germany and such, west to England - who've managed to have some luck in kicking the Atlantic Federation out of the UK area."

"I'd assume its because they're so focused in North America, they're not too concerned with a nation like the UK," Emilio said. "England isn't necessarily important too the Atlantic Federation because their attention is directed right at North America… but the Earth Alliance is turning their gaze elsewhere now… towards us."

Patricia blinked at that. "What?" she asked.

"The Earth Alliance wants this war to come to an end," he continued. "So, they are trying to 'rally' all of the people of Earth to their cause, saying that as nations of the Earth Sphere, we are obliged to serve them to fight ZAFT and the PLANTs. In short: they're trying to bully the Equilateral Union and Scandinavia into joining the EA for their little 'Crusade' against ZAFT."

Patricia was suspicious about that.

"What more can you tell me more about this so-called 'Alliance'. Since our worlds have merged, I need to know about yours as much as possible," she said.

"It was formed about two years ago, after our universe's UN was killed at the Tragedy of Copernicus on the moon," Emilio said. "People posted the blame towards ZAFT and the PLANT's since their leader at the time, Siegel Clyne, wasn't present at the meeting. So the Earth Alliance was formed as a replacement… and as a means to have an excuse to go to war with ZAFT."

Patricia's eyes narrowed a bit. "Sounds to me they're fascists," she said and Emilio nodded.

"Right on that one. They're being controlled by racists who were formerly an environmentalist group, called Blue Cosmos," he said. "This whole war was started because of their opposition to the Coordinator controversy - Coordinators being humans who are artificially enhanced while in the embryonic stage to be faster, stronger, and capable of processing more information than naturally born humans. ZAFT is a civilization made almost completely out of Coordinators."

Patricia could only blink at that. "Racism because of Genes? Now that's a pathetic excuse to go to war over," she said, and Emilio sighed.

"That's exactly what our countrymen, the Scandinavians, and the Orb Union agree to," he said. "When this war began, we wanted no part of it. We, in a sense, adopted Orb's policy of not getting involved, not aiding either side no matter what. Besides, even if we did we would've been crushed, after the Reconstruction War 70 years ago, the only nations with any worthwhile militaries were the Atlantic Federation, Eurasian Federation, Republic of East Asia, and the Orb Union. If we got involved, we'd be stomped over."

He leaned back in his chair. "But now… things are changing," he said. "With the new alliance the EU has secured with the other nations now under its control, we have multiple militaries to call upon. The EA wants to annex the EU into the Alliance, meaning if they annex us, they annex the nations within our borders, and that's something none of us want."

He looked at the Colonel. "And that… is where you come in, Colonel," he said. "You have the highest rank of the American troops here, meaning you command them, you can tell them what to do - I can't. And if - or rather _when _the EA make their move towards us, we need all the help we can get against them."

Patricia gaped a little at that.

"I… I'm flattered you want me to take command of the troops here. But I was originally sent here to Afghanistan to replace my predecessor of a top secret project," she said.

Emilio rose his eyebrow at the mention of a 'Secret Project', however he did not press the subject, as he simply smiled. "Oh come on," he said. "You didn't reach the rank of Colonel for nothing, you have leadership qualities, I know it."

"Well... a four plane formation when I flew F-16s, but not a full squadron, let alone a battalion or regiment!" she said.

"Even so, you are a leader," the General said. "And we need those leadership skills so we can fight the Alliance and keep them out of the Equatorial Union."

It seemed foolhardy at best and suicidal at worst. But her duties to her country were clear. Patricia sighed. "Alright," she said. "As long as my people are freed, you've got my help."

Emilio smiled as he nodded. "Good, and it will be done," he said. "All the men and women here who belong to the United States shall remain under your command, I'll send word to my troops to free the men and give them back their weapons and gear… they're going to need it."

Patricia nodded. "Thank you." she said. "Now, I need to find a way to contact home."

* * *

**Meanwhile**

**Somewhere in Mexico**

* * *

A small column of six Atlantic Federation half-trucks, and three jeeps, was moving through the arid landscape of Mexico. There were also at least two platoons of infantry flanking the convoy as dust filled the air, making a few of them cough in irritation. In the jeep that was in the middle of the group, two EA officers, a Captain and a Lieutenant, looked across the dry countryside.

The Commanding Officer then spoke into the radion to halt, and the convoy stopped. He then wiped the sweat off his face as he asked his lieutenant.

"See anything?" he said in exhaustion, and the Lieutenant answered.

"No, captain," he said with a shake of his head.

"Fucking cactus. Fucking heat. Fucking country..."

Before they could continue their conversation, a rocket hit the lead truck and destroyed it. "What the fuck?!" Another rocket hit the second to last truck, and 7.62X39mm Soviet rounds started coming their way. "Who the fuck is shooting at us?! Mexican Army or something?!"

"Fucking Mexicans used US equipment!"

"Then who the fuck is shooting at us?! Terrorists?!" One brave soul popped his head out of cover, spotting the people shooting at them. They didn't wear uniforms. They were in civilian casual clothing. "I think they're civies!"

"Not for long! Where the fuck are those Mobile Suits?!" The radio operator from the now-destroyed lead vehicle shook his head. "Most are too far away to help!" A grenade (an RGD-5, to be exact) landed a few feet away. "Aww, fu-" Poor bastard didn't even get to finish his sentence before he was shredded by the deadly weapon. The operator was killed 30 seconds later due to having several shards of shrapnel cutting into several key veins. He bled out. The leader of the convoy wasn't so lucky. He lived to suffer something FAR worse. He woke up a few minutes later, tied up and naked. With a man holding a machete nearby. (_A note to the squeamish: SKIP THIS if you can't take it._)

"Por lo tanto, usted es el gran mal de la Alianza Terrestre hemos escuchado mucho acerca de?" a voice speaking in Spanish said.

"Oh, FUCK."

"Esto servirá como un mensaje para que hijos de puta." He put the oversized knife to the commander's skin and began cutting into the skin, slowly but surely peeling it off. The pain was unbelievable, but he wouldn't be alive much longer to feel it as the man slit the OMNI Enforcer commander's throat, killing him within 15 seconds. He continued to skin the dead man, removing the skin completely before putting the corpse onto a cactus and tying it to the large spiky plant.

"Jefe, what about the other gringos who are still breathing?" one of the other men said, and the machete-wielding man examined his weapon, before speaking.

"Kill them all, and these Alianza Terrestre bastarda will still stop coming," he said casually, and walked off. A couple minutes later, the sounds of gunshots and screams echoed across the Mexican desert.

* * *

**Patriot-112: Oh boy, it appears we have an unsavory character in Mexico.**

**Ron the True Fan:** **Drug cartels. I do not support them, but this is going to get fun… for us.**

**117Jorn: THIS is why my mom did NOT want to go to Mexico for her vacation…**

**Takeshi Yamato: And part of why I've never even thought of going to the place.**

**Titanic X: Anyway, be sure to keep your eyes on this for the next chappie!**

**All: Ja ne!**


End file.
